Sri Lankan boxers returned in shame after contesting an Asian Under-22 and Youth Boxing Championship that took place in Kazakhstan raising questions on the mess in the sport’s administration and selection of pugilists for international meets.
One of the boxers in Umayanga Mihiran lost in the very round.
Another boxer Salman Faris escaped probable defeat by preferring to give his opponent a walk-over.
Two other boxers Yasidu Premaratne and Vimarshan Heshan also lost badly in the first round. Sri Lankan boxers entered the Meet after reportedly being snubbed by the Sports Ministry as far as funding for the tour was concerned.
The boxers eventually had to depend on funds provided by the International Boxing Association (IBA) president Umar Kremiliv.
The Sunday Observer also learns that two other boxers Nadeeka Ranasinghe and Niraj Wijewardena have appealed to the Sports Ministry, the National Olympic Committee (NOC) and International Olympic Committee (IOC) to investigate why the controversy-ridden Boxing Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) had excluded them from a Meet in Thailand that served as a trial for the upcoming Paris Olympic Games.
