Rathnapala and Wathsala Clinch NSG Marathon Titles

Winners of the Women’s Marathon (L-R): Nemesha Nidharshani (Second Place), Wathsala Herath (First Place), and H.W.C. Damayanthi (Third Place) with Chief Guest

Winners of the Men’s Marathon (L-R): K. Shanmugeswaran (Second Place), Thalawarige Rathnapala (First Place), and Amila Kumara (Third Place) with Chief Guest

By Susil Premalal in Mahiyanganaya

Veteran marathon runners Thalawarige Rathnapala of the Eastern Province (EP) and Wathsala Herath of the Central Province (CP) clinched the men’s and women’s titles respectively at the 48th National Sports Games (NSG) Marathon Championships held in Mahiyanganaya yesterday.

The events were conducted by the Department of Sports Development of the Ministry of Sports and sponsored by Nestle Lanka Limited, targeting the 2024 Paris Olympic Games qualifying standard.

Rathnapala, representing the Air Force SC, clocked 2:25.55, while Wathsala, from the Army SC, returned a time of 2:55.14s. Both athletes are currently training under internationally renowned coach Sajith Jayalal.

The Olympic qualifying standard time for the men’s marathon is 2:08.16s, and for the women’s marathon, it is 2:26.50s.

The winner of the marathon race received LKR 50,000, second place LKR 40,000, and third place LKR 30,000. In addition, special cash awards were presented to those athletes who finished among the top 10.

Results:
Men’s Marathon:

Thalawarige Rathnapala (EP) - 2:25.55s
K. Shanmugeswaran (CP) - 2:26.20s
Amila Kumara (Southern Province) - 2:27.11s
M. Shivarajan (CP) - 2:28.41s
R. D. N. S Karunarathna (Sabaragamuwa Province) - 2:30.56s

Women’s Marathon:

Wathsala Herath (CP) - 2:55.14s
Nimesha Nidharshani (Uva Province) - 3:01.52s
H. W. C. Dhamayanthi (Sabaragamuwa Province) - 3:14.28s
A. N. L. Ariyadasa (Sabaragamuwa Province) - 3:19.28s
A. S. N. Bandara (Sabaragamuwa Province) - 3:22.37s