Nilani to fight for Tokyo ticket as team leave for Patiala

by Reemus Fernando

A ten member athletics contingent inclusive of country’s highest ranked runner Nilani Ratnayake was schedule to leave for India today with the latter aiming to retain her hard earned berth for Tokyo Olympics at the Interstate Athletics Championship in Patiala.

The Athletics Federation of India is hosting the 60th National Inter State Senior Athletics Championships from June 25-29 to provide Indian athletes with a qualification opportunity for the Tokyo Olympic Games. The June 29th is the last date of the qualifying period for the postponed Tokyo Games. India’s top national athletes had been training in a bio secure bubble in Patiala and Sri Lanka’s athletes too will be competing under same conditions.

The Athletics Federation of India invited their Sri Lankan counterparts to send a team inclusive of a women’s 4×100 metres relay team as they look forward to qualify their women’s 4×100 metres team for the Games. South Asian Games medallist Amasha de Silva will anchor the Sri Lankan team.

The other five members of the team are the highest ranked Sri Lankan athletes closest to Olympic qualifying standards in their respective disciplines but it will be a tough ask for them to improve on their world rankings during the last week of the qualifying period as some of them have slipped down in rankings due to lack of competitions.

Ratnayake, who was the first Sri Lankan to secure a top position in the ‘Road to Olympic Rankings’ has slipped to the 39th position during the last couple of weeks. Her participation in the Tokyo Olympics is under threat. While her counterparts in Europe and elsewhere have quality competitions to improve their rankings, Ratnayake has only the competition in Patiala to retain her position. A win in Patiala will not earn her much points. If she falls below the 45th position in the World Ranking she will lose her ticket to Olympics. However it will be a totally different scenario if she clocks sub nine minutes and 30 seconds which only 28 athletes have achieved so far in the race to Olympics.

Rio Olympic participant Sumedha Ranasinghe who is ranked 46th in the Road to Olympics Rankings has a tough target as he has to climb 14 positions up to secure the Olympic berth in men’s javelin throw. A mighty throw of 85 metres is the only other option.

Nimali Liyanarachchi, 55th in the Road to Olympics Rankings in 800 metres, Nadeesha Ramanayake 57th in the 400 metres and Kalinga Kumarage (400m) have to reach the top 48 if they are to brush shoulders against the world’s best in Tokyo. Analysts consider it as a tough ask for them even if they reach their personal best in India.

Sri Lanka Athletics had earlier intended to send a bigger team to provide competition starved athletes a chance to gain exposure as the air tickets and lodgings of a better part of the team had been taken care of by the hosts. But the team had been pruned after the Sports Ministry advice.

However that has disappointed many top ranked athletes as the missed opportunity will affect their chances of improving the world rankings, which is a must for future events.

Local athletes missed vital opportunities to improve their world rankings when the Asian Athletics Championship, Asian Relay Championship and a number of other international events were cancelled due to the Covid 19 pandemic.

Team:

Sumeda Ranasinghe (Javelin), Kalinga Kumarage (400m), Nadeesha Ramanayake (400m), Nimali Liyanarachchi (800m), Nilani Ratnayake (3,000m steeplechase).

4x100metres Relay Team:

Amasha de Silva, Shelinda Jansen, Medhani Jayamanne, Shafiya Yamick, Lakshika Sugandi.

Officials:

Vimukthi Zoysa, Sujith Abeysekara.