PM chief guest at NSF opening

by S. M. Jiffrey Abdeen

NATIONAL SPORTS FESTIVAL: Prime minister D. M. Jayaratne will be the Chief Guest at the opening ceremony of the 34th National sports Festival organised by the Ministry of Sports and the Central Provincial Council which will be worked off at several venues in the hill capital. The main event will be worked off at the Bogambara Stadium from October 30th to November 1st. The opening ceremony will be at 3.30 p.m. on October 30th Saturday.

Central Province Director of Sports H.G. Ariyaratne at a briefing said that this event will start off at the Sri Dalada Maligawa with the lighting of the Olympic Torch in the afternoon of October 30th with two participants from the hill capital at the last Commonwealth Games - swimmers Madhavee Weeratunga and Heshan Unamboowe taking the first lap to the Meera Macham Mosque (Yatinuwara Veediya) from there athlete and Trinity’s athletic lion Halick Saleemdeen and another muslim woman athlete will take over and proceed to St. Anthony’s Cathedral. From St. Anthony’s Cathedral, the torch bearers will proceed to selva Vinagayar Hindu Temple at Katukelle where M. Ajanthan will take over and proceed to the Bogambara Stadium and hand over the Olympic Torch to the Chief Guest Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne to formally declare open the National Sports Festival.

The defending provincial champions Western Province lead the present table of points with Central Province in the second slot and Wayamba in the third slot. The other events which will be worked off in the Hill capital during the three-days are:

Athletics men and women: Bogambara Stadium, badminton men and women - St. Anthony’s College courts, Katugastota, basketball - men - Kingswood College, Kandy.

Basketball women: St. Anthony’s Girls College courts, Kandy.

Boxing men open: Air ring at Edmund Silva playground, Deiyanwela.

Softball cricket - men: Ranabima Royal College grounds, Gannoruwa.

Softball cricket women: Municipal Grounds, Getambe.

Soccer men and women: University grounds, Peradeniya.

Weightlifting men and women: Kandy YMCA Hall, Kotugodella Veediya, Kandy.

Bodybuilding: Kandy YMCA Hall.

Kabaddi men and women: Sunil S. Abeysundera playground, Kadugannawa.

Volleyball men and women: Seetha Devi Baliak Vidyalaya, Kandy.

Karate men and women: Postal Complex, Kandy.

Table tennis men and women: Peradeniya University Gymnasium.

Judo men and women: Ranabima Royal College, Gannoruwa.

The Sports Festival will come to an end on Monday, November 1st at 3.30 p.m; with the Speaker of Parliament Chamal Rajapaksa a the chief guest.