Request via Ministry to include Para Events for SAG 2019

By Susil Premalal

The Sri Lanka Paralympics Committee is to request the Ministry of Sports via the South Asian Games Federation to include several Para Sports events for the 13th South Asian Games (SAG) to be held from December 1 to 10 in Kathmandu, Nepal.

They are hoping that wheel chair tennis and athletics events to be included in the Games.

Discussions are now on regarding this.

“In future we will meet the Minister of Sports and discuss this,” said Major General Rajitha Ampemohotti, President, Sri Lanka Paralympics Committee.

If these sports are included in the Para events, Sri Lanka has the opportunity of winning several medals. Plans are also afoot to conduct the South Asian Para Games in the future.

The World Para Athletics Championships will be held in UAE, Dubai from November 7 to 15 where a team from Sri Lanka is expected to participate.

Targeting this a Para National pool consisting of 19 players (men – 16 and women- 3) are currently undergoing training. Final selections will be from Para Nationals in September/October at the Sugathadasa Stadium.

According to World Para qualifying standards the Sri Lanka team will be selected.

Nearly 100 countries will participate for the World Para Athletics Championships featuring over 1000 athletes.

The last edition of the World Para Athletics Championships was held in London where three athletes from Sri Lanka participated where Sri Lanka won a Silver Medal by Dinesh Priyantha Herath in the T-46 Javelin event. He is the leading Sri Lankan Para Athlete. In the 2016 Rio Paralympics Games he bagged a Bronze. At the Para Asian Games in Jakarta in 2018 he won a Gold in the same event.