Nimali’s decade-long dream finally realised

By Shehan Daniel

Three weeks ago, Nimali Liyanarachchi’s dream of taking part in an Olympics appeared as if it would not come to fruition.

A day before the Olympic qualification deadline of June 29, the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka (NOCSL) announced a nine-member list of athletes who would represent the country at Tokyo 2020, with the women’s 800m athlete’s name not included.

She was sitting outside the required ranking threshold, with 3000m Steeplechase runner Nilani Rathnayake the only female track and field athlete in Sri Lanka’s contingent.

The NOCSL’s announcement was premature however. Rathnayake, who had at that stage, had been in the top 45 athletes in her event and eligible to take part in the Olympics, had slipped down the rankings when it was updated on June 29, meaning she would have to relinquish her place on Sri Lanka’s team for Tokyo 2020.

One woman’s loss proved to be another woman’s gain.

 As part of the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Universality Rule that gives national Olympic committees the opportunity to nominate a male and female athlete, regardless of their timings, if none of their athletes have qualified to participate in track and field, Liyanarachchi’s name was approved to compete at the games a week later.  

The Universality Rule does not count for athletes of combined events or the Steeplechase, which meant the NOCSL could not nominate Rathnayake’s name for that slot.
“I didn’t expect to qualify, so I feel lucky to have got this opportunity to represent my country,” Liyanarachchi told the Daily Mirror yesterday. “It’s a 10-year dream that I have realised, and I am very happy about that.”

And despite being a late addition and her preparations hampered by the lockdowns and travel restrictions in the country as a result of Covid-19, Liyanarachchi hopes to make the most of her debut as an Olympian.

“I couldn’t train the way I used to, but I am still hoping to achieve a personal best at the Olympics,” she said.
With eyes of the world watching her, on sports’ biggest stage, there would be no better place for Liyanarachchi to outperform herself.