Sri Lanka’s last medal hopes in athletics [November 25 2010]

Sri Lanka will try its medal fortunes in their last two events when they compete in women’s 4 x 100m and men’s 4 x 400m relays on the penultimate day of the 16th Asian Games at the Aoti Main Stadium on Friday.

Of the two relay teams, the men’s 4 x 400m team, anchored by experienced Prasanna Sampath Amarasekera, has a better chance of a medal. Sri Lanka has regularly fared well in this event, ever since they bagged the gold medal at the 1974 Teheran Asian Games. But it will be an uphill task for Sri Lanka as they do not have services of top caliber athletes such as Sugath Tillakaratne or Rohan Pradeep Kumara who have dominated in 400m events in recent times.

Nevertheless, Amarasekera, who has been a medallist at last two Asian Games in Busan 2002 and Doha 2006, is determined to win his third successive medal. “It is going to be a hard race. But we will make every effort to win a medal for our country,” said on the ever of his farewell Asian Games. Sri Lanka team, comprising Amarasekera, Rohitha Pushpakumara, Kasun kalhara and Gayan Wickremesinghe, will run in lane seven, flanked by Japan and Thailand. Of the seven finalists, Japan has the season’s fastest timing of three minutes and 04.13 seconds.

Sri Lanka’s women’s 100m relay quartet of Chandrika Subashini, Jani Chathurangani Silva, Sujani Buddhika and Niranjani Abeywickrema, will face a tough time in Friday’s race.

They have been drawn in a disadvantageous lane eight. Of the eight finalists, Thailand has the best season’s performance of 44.05 seconds. But they are bound to face a tough challenge from China and Japan in the battle for the gold.