Senura bags training stint in USA | Sunday Observer

Senura bags training stint in USA

5 June, 2022

Promising paddler Senura Silva left for the USA last Friday on a four months training program that may further enhance his career.

The 16-year-old from Ananda College is currently Sri Lanka’s most talented player and won the national championship last year.

His vision now is to win the gold medal at the South Asian level and then go beyond to Asian level.

Being the eldest son of the former famous national champions Deepika Rodrigo (mother) and doubles champion Indika Prasad, Senura learnt the game at the I&D TT academy that was formed by his parents.

Currently, Senura is ranked number two in Sri Lanka and his talent at his age can match that of any other. His training stint in the USA can be of immense benefit as former national champion Thilina Piyadasa, who is already in the USA, is willing to extend his support.

Senura could not take part in the last South Asian Junior TT Championship held in the Maldives with the O/L examination approaching. He was also invited to participate in the selection trials for the Commonwealth Games but could not make it due to the O/L examination.

“The invitation came to Senura’s mobile phone suddenly. How can the Table Tennis Association of Sri Lanka (TTASL) take such a poor decision when exams are on,” said Indika Prasad the father of Senura.

A gold medallist at the 2019 South Asian Hopes, Cadet and Junior TT Championship held in Nepal, Senura represented the Sri Lanka senior national team at the 24th Asian Table Tennis Championships held in Indonesia in 2019.

“My parents are table tennis champions and since we had a table at home I started playing from a young age,” said Senura who studied at Isipathana till grade four before moving on to Ananda College.

He first represented Sri Lanka in the junior level from the age of 11 in 2016 and the senior category at the age of 14 in 2019.

He was adjudged the most outstanding player at the Junior Nationals in 2018 and 2019.

Senura has also received a two-year scholarship from the National Olympic Committee’s NOCSL-Crysbro next Olympic hope project and has already started his journey to the Olympics.

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