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Indians
arrive Indian cricket coach Anshuman Gaekward says that India would be neither complacent nor over confident about their chances in the upcoming tri-nation Singer Akai Nidahas Trophy tourney which starts on June 19th. The coach was echoing the mood of the Indian camp on arrival for the triangular series at Hotel Taj Samudra yesterday afternoon. Gaekwad said 'We have just completed a gruelling and hectic triangular series which featured Kenya and Bangladesh. Mind you during the course of this series we were compelled to play in such debilitating weather conditions and temperatures such as 48 degrees in cities like Gwalior and Calcutta. And since the end of that tri-nation series on May 31 the boys had a much needed break for about three weeks and re-grouped for a training camp in Madras last Monday before coming over to Sri Lanka'. When asked whether the Indians were rearing to go in the Nidahas Trophy coming on the back of their recent success in the three test rubber against Mark Taylor's Australians in April this year as well as the Pepsi Trophy won in Sharjah over the same opposition Anshuman Gaekwad said 'Just because we won a couple of one day tournaments here and there that does not mean we will be the favourites for this particular tourney. Each and every one-day tourney is a fresh challenge for us, and that is exactly the way my boys have been taught to play and instead not to go solely with past performances. He said India not for a moment underestimates the hosts Sri Lanka and New Zealand as both sides are evenly matched with each other. The Indian coach said 'we will play to the full potential of ours and let's wait and see what the final outcome would be on July 7'. When asked to comment on the new youngsters who have heralded a new era in Indian cricket of late he said: 'Yes people like Ajith Agarkar, Rhishikesh Kanitkar, Harbajan Singh, Gagan, Khoda, Rahul Sanghe and Debashish Mohanty have great potential with themselves and I am sure going by their outstanding performances recently for us they would upstage both Sri Lanka and New Zealand when it comes to individual performances'. He especially singled out Ajith Agarkar and mentioned the lad could go places in the future if he is only prepared to put his heart and soul to the game and work hard on the field. He was also quite pleased with the present form their Little Master Sachin Tendulkar was in and went on to state that it was not Tendulkar alone who had carried the Indian team to its more recent laurels in International cricket. 'Sachin is no doubt a very great batsman indeed. But what I would like to stress here is that cricket being the team game the rest like vice captain Jadeja, and Savrav Ganguly have rallied very nicely behind both Sachin and skipper 'Azhar' and that very fact has enabled the team to rise from the ashes as it were and thereby silence the vociferous critics who were critical of us since the 96 World Cup debacle in Calcutta against Sri Lanka'. Gaekward finally said that he was glad to see the second coming as he termed the comeback of captain Mohammed Azharuddin to lead the Indian team against Australia in the three-test series where the hosts recorded a memorable 2-1 series victory over the much fancied Unofficial Test World Champs. He said 'Azhar' is a seasoned campaigner and as he himself has gone through with it all before and delivered the goods for India. This One Day Tourney should be no exception. I am certain the boys are all too keen to go to the field and display their prowess to the cricket hungry Sri Lankan fans in this Singer Akai Nidahas Trophy campaign'. Gaekward however said that what matters in the end is your performance on the field on any given day and to that extent India is well prepared to face any challenge mounted by world champs Sri Lanka and New Zealand. Five Sri Lankan shooters qualify for 2000 Olympics Five of the six Markswomen who took part in the World Cup Shooting Championships held in Atlanta, (11 to 18 May) Munich (19 to 25 May) and Milan (26 to 31 May) created Sri Lanka history in Shooting, when they reached Olympic Qualifying standards at the above World Cups. AIM Mali Wickramasinghe the most outstanding shooter Pushpamali Ramanayake also from the Sri Lanka Army shot average in all competitions. Though she did not excel much, she is a good fighter when it comes to important competitions and with her experience, she should get many medals for Sri Lanka as in the past. She had a total of 04 Olympic qualifications at the World Cups. Ruwini Abeymanne excels in pistol events Hemantha Wijesinghe of the Special Task Force, coached by Veteran Shooter, Gamini Walgama, excelled in Air Pistol event where she kept on improving with every competition. She shot Sri Lanka's best Air Pistol Score in an International competition and her best personal score. She is a medal prospect for Sri Lanka and had a total of 02 Olympic qualifications at the World Cups. A young shooter gets Olympic qualification Indunil Pussela, of the Sri Lanka Air Force, though much expected from her, was the only shooter, who could not achieve Olympic qualification. She was disturbed most of the time with the cold and bad weather conditions and was sick most of the time which effected her performance. It is indeed an excellent performance by our Shooters, where 05 of them qualified in 04 events with 19 Olympic qualifications. The National Rifle Association is very proud of the fact that, five of our Shooters have achieved our first goal in getting Olympic qualifications. It is indeed a very proud moment for us in the Shooting Sport and a very proud moment for our National Shooting Coach, Col. Daya Rajasinghe, who is also the Coach of Mali, Pushpamali, Ruwini and Nilanthi. He is of the opinion that we are on course to win medals at the next Olympic Games and our performance at this year, at Commonwealth Games and Asian Games will show us the ability and strength of our Shooters. How they fared - Atlanta World Cup Air Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 372, Hemantha Wijesinghe - 364 In our history of Sri Lanka Shooting, this is the first time that a Sri Lankan Shooter, reached Olympic Qualification Score in Pistol Shooting. Ruwini Abeymanne became the first Sri Lankan Pistol Shooter to get Olympic qualification scoring 372 points. Olympic qualification score is 365 points. Hemantha Wijesinghe failed to reach the Olympic qualification score by 01 point. 3 x 20 Sports Rifle - Women - Pushpamali Ramanayake - 556, Mali Wickramasinghe - 555, Indunil Pussella - 541 As expected both Pushpamali Ramanayake and Mali Wickramasinghe shot above the Olympic Qualification score, which is 555 points. Indunil Pussella, was under much pressure, and could not reach Olympic qualification. Sports Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 556 Again, Ruwini Abeymanne shooting at her best reached Olympic qualification score in Sports Pistol event. She became the first Sri Lankan to reach the Olympic qualification score for this event, which is 555 points. Air Rifle - Women - Pushpamali Ramanayake - 388, Mali Wickramasinghe - 386, Nilanthi Chandrasekera - 373. As expected both Pushpamali Ramanayake and Mali Wickramasinghe shot above the Olympic qualification score, of 375 points. Nilanthi Chandrasekera shooting for the first time, in an International Competition, failed to reach Olympic qualification score by 02 points. The following three shooters reached Olympic qualification in following events at the Atlanata World Cup Competition. a, Pushpamali Ramanayake - Air Rifle Event, Sports Rifle Event. b. Mali Wickramasinghe - Air Rifle Event, Sports Rifle Event. c. Ruwini Abeymanne - Air Pistol Event, Sports Pistol Event. Munich World Cup 3x20 Sports Rifle - Women - Mali Wickramasinghe - 588, Pushpamali Ramanayake - 541, Indunil Pussella - 532 Mali Wickramasinghe shot better than in Atlanta and reached Olympic Qualification for the second time, though it was very bad weather and cold. (the temperature dropped to 11 ūC.) Both Ramanayake and Pussella could not cope up with the cold and lost concentration and co-ordination. Air Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 371, Hemantha Wijesinghe - 371 Ruwini Abeymanne reached Olympic Qualification score for the second time and Hemantha Wijesinghe reached Olympic qualification score for the first time. Olympic Qualification score is 365 points. Sports Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 551 Again, due to very bad weather and cold, Ruwini Abyemmane lost her concentration in the Rapid stage and could not reach the Olympic qualification score. She failed by 04 points. Olympic Qualification Score in this event is 555 points. Air Rifle - Women - Mali Wickramasinghe - 390, Pushpamali Ramanayake - 382, Nilanthi Chandrasekera - 380 Mali Wickramasinghe shot her best score and showed that she is in good condition by shooting 390 points, out of a possible of 400 points. Pushpamali Ramanayake shot an average and both Mali Wickramasinghe and Pushpamali Ramanayake reached Olympic qualification for the second time in this event. Nilanthi Chandrasekera, the new shooter too shot well to reach Olympic qualification score for the first time. Olympic Qualification score is 375 points. Munich World Cup a. Mali Wickramasinghe - Air Rifle Event, Sports Rifle Event. b. Pushpamali Ramanayake - Air Rifle Event c. Ruwini Abeymanne - Air Pistol Event d. Hemantha Wijesinghe - Air Pistol Event e. Nilanthi Chandarsekera - Air Rifle Event Milan World Cup Air Rifle - Women - Mali Wickramasinghe - 389, Pushpamali Ramanayake - 381, Nilanthi Chandrasekera - 371 Mali Wickramasinghe shot best again to complete a very successful series of good scores. Pushpamali Ramanayake shot average and both Mali Wickramasinghe and Pushpamali Ramanayake reached Olympic qualification for the third time in this event. Nilanthi Chandrasekera, the new shooter failed to reach Olympic qualification score by 04 points. The Olympic Qualification score is 375 points. 3x20 Sports Rifle - Women - Mali Wickramasinghe - 560, Pushpamali Ramanayake - 554, Indunil Pussella - 530 Mali Wickramasinghe shot better than in Atlanta and in Muncih to reach Olympic Qualification for the third time, though again shooting through bad weather and cold (the temperature dropped to 12 ūC.). Both Pushpamali Ramanayake and Indunil Pussella could not again manage the cold and Pushpamali Ramanayake failed to reach Olympic qualification by just 01 point. But Indunil Pussella could not manage the cold and had to seek medical attention as she found it difficult to breathe. Olympic qualification score is 555 points. Mali Wickramasinghe with her excellent performance of 560 points, got selected in to the final round and shot 561 points (Further improvement from her last score) and reached Olympic qualification score for the fourth time in this event. Air Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 373, Hemantha Wijeshinghe - 373 Ruwini Abyemanne reached Olympic Qualification score for the third time and Hemantha Wijesinghe reached Olympic qualification score for the second time in this event and both of them shot identical scores of 373 points each. These are our best Air Pistol scores ever shot in an International Competition. Olympic Qualification score is 365 points. Sports Pistol - Women - Ruwini Abeymanne - 562 Though there was bad weather, Ruwini Abeymanne managed to handle the cold and came out with a very good performance to shoot 562 points and reach Olympic qualification for the second time in this event. Further, this is the first time ever, a Sri Lankan Sports Pistol Shooter went over the 560 points. Also this is the best personal score achieved by a Sri Lankan in this event. Olympic Qualification Score in this event is 555 points. Milan World Cup The following four shooters reached Olympic qualification at Milan World Cup a. Mali Wickramasinghe - Air Rifle Event, Sports Rifle Event. (Twice after qualifying to the final round in the Competition) b. Ruwini Abeymanne - Air Pistol Even, Sports Pistol Event c. Pushpamali Ramanayake - Air Rifle Event d. Hemantha Wijesinghe - Air Pistol Event Hon. Minister of Samurdhi, Youth Affairs & Sports, S. B. Dissanayake released the required funds from the Ministry of Sports for the Team to participate at the World Cup Competitions. A Sri Lankan Family in USA, Dr. and Mrs. (DR) Harishandra Piyasena provided accommodation to our Team in Atlanta and made it a lovely home for the Shooters with a variety of Sri Lankan food. We are very proud as a Nation to have such wonderful Sri Lankans among us. The Manager of the Team. Col. Lucky Rajasinghe, who was always a source of strength behind the Team and his experience and knowledge as a Shooter was always a useful asset to the Team. Olympic 2000 pool 1) Mali Wickramasinghe - Already in the Olympic 2000 Pool 2) Pushpamali Ramanayake- Already in the Olympic 2000 Pool 3) Ruwini Abeymanne 4) Hemantha Wijesinghe 5) Nilanthi Chandrasekera Our Shooters with their commitment dedication and sacrifice has proved that they are good and that, they will not let us down. They have always continued to work as a Team together, to achieve our Aim in winning Olympic medals. With the participation at the World Cups, we have achieved our goal in getting Olympic Qualification and the Shooters will be aiming for our next goal. Sri Lanka shooting Team has accomplished much. They have resorted a sense of confidence. They have strengthened their ability. Coaches and Shooters have mastered the rule of working together as a Team and the shooters have done their best. Avishka scores brilliant
96 Opener Avishka Gunawardena made a strong claims for a berth in the Sri Lanka one-day squad scoring a blistering (96) for Sri Lanka Board President XI which still couldn’t prevent them from a 32 run defeat against New Zealand in a warm up match yesterday. Chasing a formidable target of 240 in 50 overs, Gunawardena dished out some classic strokes all around ground. His innings comprised one towering six and seven power packed boundaries. He faced 115 balls and occupied the crease for 210 minutes. New Zealand after winning the toss elected to take first lease of wicket which was ideal for batting. New Zealand rested two of their key players wicketkeeper batsman Adam Parore and all rounder Chris Carins while the fifteen thousand strong crowd were dejected early in the morning as the appointed Sri Lanka opener Sanath Jayasuriya failed to turn up for the game. Speculation mounted over his absence, who had bad patch during the test match scoring only one half century. New Zealand had an early blow when promoted opener Graig Spearman was clean bowled by seamer Suresh Perera when the score was 23 on the board. Co-opener Nathan Astle together with skipper Stephen Fleming stood firm to build the innings from further disaster. Both batsmen went on to make half centuries. They put on a (94) run partnership for the second wicket. Fleming departed first when the score was 117 offering return catch to off spinner Tilan Samaraweera for (52). His inning consisted of six boundaries. He faced 60 balls. Astle was next to depart as he challenged Upeka Fernando arms with cheeky singles. Upeka fielding at mid-on had a direct hit at the non strikers end which resulted Astle’s departure. Astle had four hits to the ropes. Skipper Mahanama introduced the other off spinner Russel Arnold as Pacies Pradeep Havage and Chandika Haturusinghe as they failed to certain the run flow. Arnold delivered the goods for his captain with his bowling and brilliant ground fielding. Arnold put the skids in the New Zealand middle order by claiming three valuable wickets while involving in two run outs which enabled to restrict the scoring spree. His figures read 10-0-40-30. New Zealand concluded their innings at 240 for eight wickets. Board President XI in reply, lost opener Upkea Fernando for three runs when he was ruled out LBW to self arm seamer Shave O’Conner. They lost two quick wickets of Russel Arnold and skipper Roshan Mahanama for (5) and (7) respectively. Both players lost their wickets offering rash shots. Avishka and Chandika Haturusinghe lifted the pressure by engaging in a 91 run stand for the fourth wicket. Haturusinghe scored (27) off 46 balls with the assistance of two boundaries. His innings came to an end when looking for a quick single Fleming’s direct hit had Haturusinghe’s innings came to an end. Then the tail once again collapsed and the Board President XI could only post 208 runs of 50 overs losing nine wickets Shane O'Connor and Craig McMillan accounted for three wickets each to run though inning. SCOREBOARD BOWLING: Suresh Perera 6-0-30-1, Ravindra Pushpakumara 9-1-30-0, Pradeep Havage 2-0-26-0, Chandika Haturusinghe 3-0-20-0, Tilan Samaraweera 10-0-32-1, Malinga Bandara 10-0-51-0, Russel Arnold 10-0-40-3.
BOARD PRESIDENT'S XI FALL OF WICKETS: 1-9 (Upeka),
2-37 (Arnold), 3-57 (Mahanama), 4-148 (Haturusinghe),
5-151, (Avishka), 6-155 (Hewage), 7-163 (Samarawera),
8-194 (Perera), 9-194 (Pushpakumara). Volleyball to be among the top
sports Volleyball is the highest participated global sport, observed the Czechoslovakian Volleyball coach Dr. Mill Ejim, after the completion of their level two coaches coaching course. Speaking to ‘The Island’ he said that there are 214 Volleyball Federations registered with their world governing body Federation International de Volleyball (FIVB). "To my knowledge the second is Basketball while Athletics and Soccer follows", he said. "Even United Nations do not have 214 member countries," he quipped. Ejim who holds a doctorate in sports said that the FIVB is now making plans to make volleyball among the top three popular sports in the world. "We have found out that soccer and basketball attract tremendous media and spectator interest. By the year 2001 we hope to be among the top three sports in the world," he said. He also disclosed that in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics the highest media attention was for volleyball and athletics. "These two were the highest broadcast sports," he said. However he admitted that volleyball does not receive sponsorship and television rights money, as in for soccer, ice hockey, billiards, cricket or tennis. "This is the concept we want to change. You will see that we at the FIVB have brought some technical intervals to the game in a bid to provide advertisers more time for commercials," he explained. Airing his views on the level two course, he conducted with his colleague Dr. Ernest Bayer, he said Lankans theory standard was low. "They also need more matches to officiate as coaches," he said. Asked if the two weeks period was sufficient to conduct on advance course of this nature he said that was the time frame allocated for them and it was enough. Asked to comment on the language barrier he said a services of a translator was badly needed. He also said Udeni Priyadharshani, Aruna Shantha and Y. S. Keerthipala were outstanding from the Lankan coaches. He also disclosed that out of 18 candidates only 7 passed. Commenting on the Sri Lankan volleyball team he said that any team needs at least 15 to 20 internationals per year to reach International standard. Height is important for volleyball players only when they reach international standard. For a team like Sri Lanka height is not so important," he said. Dr. Bayer said that he observed during his short stay in Sri Lanka that the Netball Federation has picked tall players for its squad. Volleyball too should follow suit, he said. K. A. D. Wijepala, Director National Youth Council is the only coach who has passed the FIVB stage three status in coaching. In addition there are 40 who have passed the FIVB level two course while there are 110 who has under gone level one coaching course. Following are the coaches who passed the level two stage. H. W. Samaraweera, Nihal Ranaweera, Miss Udeni Priyadharshani, Y. S. Keerthipala, Aruna Shantha, Saman A. Bandara and W. Dharmadasa. |
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