Prasanna, Subashini in 400 metre finals today

Dinesh Weerawansa reporting from Qatar

ASIAN GAMES: Doha, Dec.9. - Sri Lanka will figure in both the men's and women's 400m finals of the 15th Asian Games athletic competition at Khalifa Stadium here tomorrow (10).

Prasanna Sampath Amarasekera will run in men's 400m final while Chandrika Subhashini will figure in women's 400m final. The 400m event has been a traditional stronghold for Sri Lanka, having won the gold medals in both the events at the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok.

Sri Lanka's Damayanthi Darsha has won women's 400m gold medal at the last two Asian Games in Bangkok and Busan but is not defending her back to back titles in Doha due to an injury. But Subhashini, a product of Madampe Central College, made sure Sri Lanka makes it to their third successive women's 400m final at Asian Games history.

Chandrika Subhashini came fourth in the women's 400m semi final heat two worked off this morning. But her timing of 56.50 seconds was good enough to earn a place in Sunday's final, scheduled for 4.25 pm local time (6.55 pm SL time). Finishing ahead of the Lankan lass were the winner of heat two Asami Tanno (Japan - 53.94), followed by Manjeet Kaur (India - 53.95) and Maria Maslyonko (Kazakhstan - 54.32).

Subhashini, a 19-year-old emerging athlete from Nikaweratiya, will run in lane two, in joining the above three in women's 400m final. The other four advancing to the final from semi final heat one are Kazakhstan's Olga Tereshkova, the winner in 53.30 sconds, along with Indian South Asian Games gold medallist Pinki Paramanik (53.90), Chinese Xiaoyin Tang (54.19) and Japanese Mayu Kida (54.58).

True that Subhashini may find it hard in the final. But her presence in the final is an eye opener to all as she has been at the receiving end in recent times. "I am happy that I was able to make it to the final. I know I have a huge task ahead but I will make every effort to do my heart out," she said after her semi final heat today.

In contrast, South Asian Games silver medallist Menaka Wickremasinghe was a failure as she failed to make it to the finals. She finished fifth in women's 400m semi final heat one with a timing of 57.73 seconds.

Olga Tereshkova of Kazakhstan heads the qualifiers for the women's 400m final after winning her heat in 53.30 seconds. Tershkova, who won silver as part of her nation's 4x400m relay team in Busan four years ago, never looked in any danger and could afford to ease down in the finishing straight. Japan's Asami Tanno won heat 2 in 53.94.

The 21 year-old won bronze at last year's Asian Championships and should contend for a medal in Sunday's final. The name to watch though could be last year's Asian Championships gold medallist Manjeet Kaur who looked comfortable as she finished just one-hundredth of a second adrift of Tanno. Afterwards, Kaur said, "I have run 53.94. which is just OK. Today the heats, tomorrow the finals, I have hopes."

Leading Sri Lanka's challenge to men's 400m final would be Prasanna Amarasekera, who came second in last night's men's 400m semi finals. It is pity that compatriot Rohan Pradeep Kumara could not make it, after finishing a poor fourth in the other men's 400m heat. It looked like Rohan Pradeek suffered a hamstring injury when he gave up the race after leading up to the 300m mark. But team sources confirmed today that there is no big concern and that the South Asian Games triple gold medallist should be fit to do the anchor lap for them in men's 4 x 400m relay.

Amarasekera, meanwhile, had a long workout at the Doha Sports Club training track. "The unusual weather here is a big worry. But I have been training hard. I am looking forward to my race on Sunday," he said. Amarasekera will run in lane eight. Of all men's 400m finalists, Bahrain's Brendon Aalan Simpson has the best season's beat and career best timing of 44.64 and is tipped to win the gold. The men's 400m final is scheduled to commence at 4.45pm local tine (7.15 pm SL time) on Sunday.

Twenty seven-year-old Zhou Chunxiu won gold medal in the women's marathon this morning with a superb exhibition of front running to win in two hours, 27 minutes and three seconds. She Chunxia took the race on within the first few kilometres, fearlessly attacking the 42.195k looped course along the city's Corniche.

Kiyoka Shimahara of Japan, 5th in this year's Boston Marathon, accounted for the silver medal in 2:30:34 after she out-sprinted compatriot Kayoko Obata after a race long duel.

"I was in good shape today, I have been training for this event and was confident.

The weather was not good, it was really windy, but due to my training I was up to my usual standard and quite confident." She said. Discussing the course, she added, "It was absolutely not comfortable and it made me exhausted. It really effected my performance today," said the champion. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's Mithun Perera and Kandasamy Prabagaran were joint 30th with four others in the men's individual golf championship of the 15th Asian Games continued at Doha Golf Club this morning.

Perera followed his previous day's 73 with a net 75 to total 148 on completion of the first two round's of the four-day championship. Prabagaran, who was slightly behind Perera on day one, followed his opening round of 75 with a slightly better score of 73 to aggregate 148. Their team mates - Tissa Chandradasa (tied for 42nd place with 152) and Amrit de Soysa (tied for 48th with 156 finished well behind in the championship which has attracted 69 top amateur golfers in Asia.

South Korean Doo Moon Kim took the lead with a 134, following his opening round of 69 with an improved day of 65.

His great form mainly enabled the Korean team to take the lead in the men's team championship. The have a team total of 413 to take a thin lead over second-placed Taiwan (415).