Sri Lanka’s weight lifters continue to train with dedication despite the Covid-19 pandemic and keep to their schedules. They are doing so with the hope of contesting the next Asian Weightlifting Championship which is scheduled to be held next March.
Speaking to the Sunday Observer Commonwealth Games Silver medallist Indika Dissanayake said that they cannot give excuses with the focus on international events and have to maintain their fitness.
According to the latest rankings three Sri Lankan lifters are among the first three places. Dissanayake is placed third in the 73 kg weight category. Thilanka Palagasinghe is third in the 61 weight category and Dilanka Kumara is second in the 55 kg weight category.
“These new rankings is a big boost for us. We are focusing on Olympic qualification. International experience is more important to achieve our target,” said Dissanayake.
“Weight lifting is a medal winning sport in Sri Lanka. I won the silver at the Commonwealth Games held in Gold Coast, Australia in 2018 while two others Hansani Holmes and Chaturange Lakmal won bronze in Gold Coast.”
At present the weight lifters are in residential camps in Kandy and Kurunegala. Their coach RB Wickremasinghe and assistant coach KN Dayan are at hand to give their advice. Proper nutrition is important to maintain their body weight and contest in that category.
Indika Dissanayake, Chaturanga Lakmal, Ushan Charuka, Chanaka Peters, Hansani Holmes, Chamari Warnakulasuriya and Chaturika Priyanthi are training in Kandy while Chintana Vidhanage and Isuru Kumara are training at Kurunegala.