Daniel Lee strengthens swimming squad at SA Games

By Leslie Fernando

Daniel Lee is his name. It certainly sounds a bell as he is known to be a fine swimmer.

The 17 year-old Sri Lanka 'powerhouse' has established three national records at the recently concluded FINA World Swimming Championships Short Course meet held in China and is back in the island from Australia after training and competing at the state championships there.

Lee's immediate goal of course to win Gold at the 10th South Asian Games swimming and also to qualify for Asian Games to be held in Doha, Qutar in December. He hopes that training in Australia should help him to reach both targets.

Lanky Lee said that he has done his share of training in Australia under Jim Fowlie and Brooke Hanson who won the silver medal in 100 metres breast stroke in Athens Olympics. "I did not really check on my recent timings in the 50, 100, 200 metres freestyle and 200 metres individual medely, but if I do anything better that what I did in China it should be a bonus for me" Lee said.

He said that there is no point in doing many events. "Now I wish to concentrate on just four events 50, 100, 200 metres freestyle and 200 metres individual medley. The timings are good enough to achieve success in Colombo in just six days time" was the swimmer's immediate comments.

Lee is what one may call a self made swimmer. He took to swimming when he was nine and trained hard. The first international exposure came in 2005 when he swam at three international meets abroad and met with success.

Lee has been to Australia on three occasions before and after his selection to the South Asian Games swimming team. He did well at the inter-international schools swimming championships, representing Asian International School and also at the National Swimming Championships and the SA Games swimming trials.

He will join the other 30 swimmers in the Sri Lanka swimming team for the SAG and train at the Police Swimming pool at Narahenpita and Sugathadasa Stadium swimming pool under Australian coach and assisted by three other local coaches.

Lee studied and swam for White Friars College in Melbourne, which is a swimming school with academic facilities. At the Australian State Schools Swimming Championships, Lee fared prominently and the school authorities have requested him to come back after SA Games.