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| Sunday, 19 January 2003 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Mallika top veteran athlete by Leslie Fernando One will wonder how this short, small made 65-year old Mallika Satchithananda is able to perform so well in athletics at this late age. But she has proved beyond doubt that she is the best in her age group in Sri Lanka from her 45th year. To date she has won 55 gold medals, 20 silver medals and 22 bronze medals for Sri Lanka in international veteran championships at Asian level, world veterans and world masters level. She also held 4 Asian Veterans Games records in her age groups. Mallika took to veteran athletics in 1985, a field which was introduced here by the Mercantile Athletic Federation in 1985 of which Mallika's husband, K. Satchithananda was the General Secretary. This Association held a trial met at Torrington grounds and selected 22 men and women athletes for the 3rd Asian Veterans Championships held in Singapore. Mallika won 5 gold medals and established 4 new Asian records at this meet. Sri Lanka was placed third in medal tally. That was the beginning of Mallika's entry. She followed this success again in the same year at the first World Masters Games held in Toronto, Canada where she won a gold medal in the 5000 metres walk and silver medals in 2 other events. But her memorable participation was in Indonesia in 1986 at the 4th Asian Veterans Championships where she won 7 gold medals and established 4 new Asian records. At the International Veterans Championships held in Singapore in 1987, Mallika won 6 golds. In the same year at the 7th World Veterans meet held in Melbourne, Australia she participated in 5 events. In the marathon (26 miles 285 yards) she won a finishers medal and fared well in the other events. |
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