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by Richard Dwight

The Development Lotteries Board (DLB) arrives at a significant milestone on the 18th of January - when it registers a '20 year' record of sustained service to the community and the country at large. A contribution such as this, by any standard, is worthy of celebration in a manner befitting the occasion.

And so to mark this 'red letter day', a series of events have been arranged for by DLB one amongst which, will be the holding of three separate cycle races on Saturday January 25. The cycle races are regarded as unique, for the reason that it is held on one and the same day. Commencing from different parts of the island and will end in the evening at the Parliamentary Complex at Kotte.

This was disclosed to the Media, at a briefing held at the Kollupitiya Sea View Hotel, by the Marketing and Management Consultant DLB, Nalin Atygalle and the Deputy General Manager Marketing Development DLB, Anura Jayaratne. Atygalle was of the view, that since a festive air of peace prevails, that the DLB through their agents, ticket sellers and yet other avenues will espouse the cause of peace both in the urban as well as rural areas.

It was gathered, that since it was an undertaking involving around 600 cyclists, there will be assistance forthcoming from many a quarter, to give awards not only to the winners but to a good many who participate. The races are being organized in concurrence with the National Mountain Biking Association (NMBA).

The president of the NMBA, Amal Suriyage recalled that four years ago under Minister S.B. Dissanayake, they did have races of this nature. According to Amal the uniqueness of the forthcoming three races on January 25, lay, in that the races will commence at 12 noon and end on the same evening. The races are open to any rider coming from any club or even to those unattached. Entry coupons will appear in the local dailies or could be had from the DLB head office and the NMBA, which should be perfected by the participants and handed over before 12 noon on the 21st of January.

The first two races are for standard cycles, one of which will commence from Galle around 12 noon, the other at 12.30 p.m. from Balangoda and the third, perhaps the prestigious event for racing cyclists, with much advanced sophisticated cycles, will commence at 1.00 p.m. from Dambulla. All of them are expected to converge at the Parliamentary Complex at Kotte, around 4.30 p.m., 5.00 p.m. and 5.30 p.m. respectively.

In a major exercise such as this, a good many officials and police officers, will be deployed to ensure the smooth functioning of the races - which medical attention too will be provided, with members of the St. John's Brigade standing by.

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