SLB to give more international exposure to Lankan shuttlers ahead of Olympics

Niluka Karunaratne

• Sri Lanka Badminton to assist players to achieve Olympic Games qualifications as massive investment paves way for top ranked shuttlers to compete in a carefully selected program

Sri Lanka’s ace badminton player Niluka Karunaratne will be targeting his third appearance in the Olympic Games as he chases valuable ranking points along with five of his compatriots who will compete in international tournaments in the coming months, Sri Lanka Badminton (SLB) has announced.

The 34-year-old star, who won his ninth international singles title at the Benin International Tournament in June, is currently occupying the 129th position in the Badminton World Federation (BWF) men’s singles rankings. He also won a bronze medal at the Côte d'Ivoire International Tournament in Ivory Coast few days ago and will be looking to improve on his rankings when he competes in two more international events next month. 

The SLB, under the leadership of Rohan de Silva, who himself is a veteran badminton player and a keen enthusiast of the sport, has made arrangements to provide maximum exposure to the Lankan shuttlers within the qualification period ahead of the global sports extravaganza which will take place in Tokyo next year. As part of SLB’s plan, Niluka, who achieved a career-high ranking of 37 just after the London Olympics, will compete in the Hellas International (8-11August) and the Bulgarian Open Championship (12-15August). Meanwhile, his brother, Dinuka Karunaratne who sits 20 spots behind him in the BWF singles rankings, will compete in six international tournaments this year.Dinuka, also a national champion like his famous brother, will be off to Belarus to take part in the Belarus International Series from 29August to 1September. He will also compete in the South Australia Challenge (11-15September), Sydney International Series (18-22September), Dutch Open Grand Prix (8-13October), SaarlorluxOpen Grand Prix (29October-3November), Welsh International Series (27-30November) and Italian International Challenge (12-15December).

Elsewhere, Sachin Dias and Buwanaka Goonathilake, ranked 143rd in men's doubles in the BWF computer, will also have a busy season. The top Sri Lankan pair will compete in the Bulgarian Open Championship (12-15December), Carebaco International (20-25August), Perth International (4-8September), Sydney International (18-22September), Annapurana Nepal (25-29September), Bahrain International (9-13October), Dubai International Challenge (16-20October), Saar Lor Lux Open (29October-3November) and Bulgarian Open Championship (12-15December).

Meanwhile, KavindiSirimanne,ranked 154th in the BWF women’s singles table, will team up with her doubles partner ThiliniPramodikaHendahewa, who is also the National Champion, targeting a ticket to the next Olympics. The pair, currently positioned at an impressive 85th in the doubles rankings, will take part in the Lagos International Challenge (24-27July) and Hyderabad Open (6-11August).

The qualification period for the Olympic contenders will end on 26April next year while the world ranking lists as of 28 April 2020 will be used to allocate 34 individuals for singles and 16 pairs for doubles quota places per gender to the highest ranked athletes, taking into consideration the maximum quota allocation per the National Olympic Committee per event.

The Tokyo Olympic Gameswill take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020.