News
Black Mare unaware her bronze turned silver
Madrid IAAF World Cup 2002:
‘I can’t understand why I wasn’t informed’– Susanthika
Olympic medalist, Susanthika Jayasinghe, had been unaware, until yesterday, that her IAAF World Cup bronze was upgraded to a silver more than a decade ago.
Jayasinghe said in an interview with The Island, “I won a bronze in Madrid. Had the winner of the race been disqualified then my bronze would have been upgraded to silver.”
When The Island informed her that the World Athletics had in fact upgraded her bronze won in Madrid to silver years back, she was surprised. She said, “I can’t understand why I was not informed of the silver and was not awarded it,” said the retired sprinter who has two other World Athletics medals against her name apart from the Olympic silver.
Jayasinghe won a silver in the 200 metres of the 1997 Athens World Championships and a bronze from the 200 metres of the 2007 Osaka World Championships.
The 2000 Sydney Olympic bronze Jayasinghe won was subsequently upgraded to a silver after Marian Johns admitted to doping.
Jayasinghe said that she had rightfully received the Olympic silver but admitted that she did not know anything about the World Cup silver until yesterday.
The 2002 Madrid World Cup silver is the only world level medal that Jayasinghe has won in the 100 metres sprint.
Three Sri Lankans, namely, Jayasinghe, Sugath Thilakaratne and Rohan Pradeep Kumara, representing Asia, participated in the 2002 World Cup.
Thilakaratne and Rohan Pradeep formed the Asian men’s 4×400 metres team together with Saudi Arabia’s Hamdan Al-Bishi and Kuwait’s Fawzi Al Shammari. They were placed fourth, but in 2007 it was upgraded to bronze after US sprinter Antonio Pettigrew, who was part of the gold winning US team, admitted to having used performance enhancing drug between 1997 and 2003.
World Athletics and the International Olympic Committee cancelled the gold medals won by US teams involving Pettigrew.
In the women’s 100 metres of that 2002 World Cup, Jayasinghe won the bronze for Asia and finished fourth in the 200 metres. Gold medal in the 100 metres was won by Marion Jones, who was disqualified in 2007 after admitting to having used drugs from 2000 to 2002.
The World Athletics statistics now lists Jamaica’s Tayna Lawrence, who represented Americas, as the winner and Jayasinghe as the second.
Jayasinghe in her interview with The Island expressed shock and disappointment over the failure of the sports authorities to inform her that her bronze had been upgraded to a silver.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombo welcomed the U.S. Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, former National Basketball Association (NBA) and Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) players Stephen Howard and Astou Ndiaye, from June 8 through 14.
The Public Diplomacy section of the U.S. Embassy said that it would launch a weeklong basketball program intended to harness the unifying power of sports, made possible through collaboration with Foundation of Goodness and IImpact Hoop Lab.
While in Sri Lanka, Howard and Ndiaye, both retired professional basketball players, will conduct a weeklong program, Hoops for Hope: Bridging Borders through Basketball. The Sports Envoys will lead basketball clinics and exhibition matches and engage in leadership sessions in Colombo and Southern Province for youth aged 14-18 from Northern, Uva, Eastern and Western Provinces, offering skills and leadership training both on and off the court. The U.S. Envoys will also share their expertise with the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation, national coaches, and players, furthering the development of basketball in the country. Beyond the clinics, they will collaborate with Sri Lankan schoolchildren to take part in a community service project in the Colombo area.
“We are so proud to welcome Stephen and Astou as our Sports Envoys to Sri Lanka, to build on the strong people-to-people connections between the United States and Sri Lanka,” said U.S. Ambassador Julie Chung. “The lessons that will be shared by our Sports Envoys – communication, teamwork, resilience, inclusion, and conflict resolution – are essential for leadership development, community building, equality, and peace. The U.S. Sports Envoy program is a testament to our belief that sports can be a powerful tool in promoting peace and unity.”
SJB Colombo District MP Mujibur Rahuman in parliament demanded to know from the government the reasons for CEB suspending the leave of all its employees until further notice from Thursday.
MP Rahuman said that the CEB has got an acting General Manager anew and the latter yesterday morning issued a circular suspending leave of all CEB employees with immediate effect until further notice.
“We demand that Minister Kanchana Wijesekera should explain this to the House. This circular was issued while this debate on the new Electricity Amendment Bill was pending. There are many who oppose this Bill. The Minister must tell parliament the reason for the urge to cancel the leave of CEB employees,” the MP said.However, Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena prevented Minister Wijesekera responding to the query and said that the matter raised by MP Rahuman was not relevant.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM) successfully concluded the 8th Annual CIPM Symposium, which took place on 31st May 2024. Themed “Nurturing the Human Element—Redefining HRM in a Rapidly Changing World,” the symposium underscored the pivotal role of human resource management (HRM) in today’s dynamic global landscape. Since its inception in 1959, CIPM has been dedicated to advancing the HR profession through education, professional development, and advocacy, solidifying its position as Sri Lanka’s leading professional body for HRM.
Ken Vijayakumar, the President of the CIPM, graced the occasion as the chief guest. The symposium commenced with the welcome address by the Chairperson, Prof. Arosha Adikaram, followed by the Web Launch of the Symposium Proceedings and Abstract Book by the CIPM President. The event featured distinguished addresses, including a speech by Chief Guest Ken Vijayakumar, President of CIPM, and an address by Guest of Honor Shakthi Ranatunga, Chief Operating Officer of MAS Holdings Pvt. Ltd., Sri Lanka.
The symposium also featured an inspiring keynote address by Prof. Mario Fernando, Professor of Management and Director of the Centre for Cross Cultural Management (CCCM) at the University of Wollongong, Australia.
Vote of Thanks of the inauguration session was delivered by Dr. Dillanjani Weeratunga, Symposium Co-chair.
The symposium served as a comprehensive platform for researchers to present their findings across a wide range of critical topics in HRM. These included Cultural Diversity and Inclusion, Talent Development and Retention, Ethical Leadership and Corporate Social Responsibility, Adapting to Technological Advancements, Mental Health and Well-being at Work, Global Workforce Challenges, Employee Empowerment, and Reskilling and Upskilling.
The plenary session was led by Prof. Wasantha Rajapakse. Certificates were awarded to the best paper presenters during the valedictory session, followed by a vote of thanks delivered by Kamani Perera, Manager of Research and Development.
The annual symposium of CIPM was a truly inclusive event, attracting a diverse audience that spanned undergraduates, graduates, working professionals, research scholars and lecturers. This widespread interest highlights the symposium’s significance in the field of HRM, offering a unique opportunity for everyone to network and learn from scholarly brains.The CIPM International Research Symposium was sponsored by Hambantota International Port, Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT), E B Creasy & Co. PLC, and Print Xcel Company.
US sports envoys to Lanka to champion youth development
Rahuman questions sudden cancellation of leave of CEB employees
