Sports Minister visits Athletes Village to congratulate Asian Games winners

Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe with Tharushi Karunaratne and her Coach Susantha Fernando

Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe visited the Athletes Village of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou to congratulate the athletes who had won medals for the country and also the coaches and officials who had made it possible.

Sri Lanka ended up with a haul of five medals – one Gold (800m Women), two Silver (Javelin Throw Women and T20 Cricket Women) and two Bronze (4x400m Relays Men and Women). It was the best achievement by Sri Lanka in 21 years since the Busan 2002 Asian Games.

Star of the Games for Sri Lanka was 18-year-old Tharushi Karunaratne who became the youngest-ever Gold medallist at the Asian, Commonwealth or Olympic Games. Her Gold is the first-ever win in the 800m at the Asian Games. She also anchored the 4x400m relay team to secure the Bronze.

Similarly, Nadeesha Lekamge’s Silver in the Javelin Throw is the first-ever medal won in a throwing event.