Spirited athletes aim for Tokyo Paralympic glory

While the Olympic bound athletes are all set to fly to Tokyo later this week, nine athletes are likely to compete at the Paralympics which will be held exactly a month after the start of the Tokyo Games have been finalised. The Paralympic Games will be held from August 24 to September 5 in the same facility being used for the Olympics.

Five athletes including Dinesh Priyantha Herath, who won a bronze at the last Rio Paralympics, have earned direct qualification so far and the National Paralympic Committee (NPC) expects at least four more athletes to earn wild card entries.

Samitha Dulan (Javelin throw), Mahesh Jayakody (Rowing), Sampath Bandara (Archery) and H.G. Dharmasena (Wheelchair Tennis) are the other four athletes who have earned direct qualification. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Para athletes have been preparing tirelessly for the global showpiece in Tokyo.

According to Col. Deepal Herath, President NPC, the preparations for the Tokyo Paralympics has started soon after the conclusion of Para Asian Games in Indonesia, 2018.

“We have given them intensive training and they did a performance base assessment once in every three months. The athletes who were not up to the required standard were excluded from the pool,” said Col. Herath.

“At present there are 11 athletes in the squad. Out of the 11 athletes, two of them have obtained direct qualification for the Tokyo Paralympics”.

He said a squad of 16 athletes have been selected by the National Sports Council as High Performance Athletes.

“They have been provided with all the required facilities including a monthly allowance. We are monitoring them from close quarters,” he added.

After the Tokyo Paralympics, their next aim will be Para Asian Games in Hangzhou, China in 2022. The Paralympic Committee have already begun conversations with social service officers attached to divisional secretariat island-wide to find para athletes. In addition 65 sports associations across the country will conduct talent identification programmes.

“We want more differently-abled people to compete in sports and I invite differently-abled people to take to sports as there is lot of scope now. I hope the Paralympics in Tokyo will be a stepping stone for the future generation of Para athletes in the country,” he added.

Pradeep Sanjaya is the first Para athlete to win a medal for Sri Lanka. In 2012, in London he won bronze in the Men's 400m race.