Tillekeratne the great

It is time to remember athletes who brought honour and glory to Sri Lanka and it is for this purpose that Dialog Telekom in collaboration with the Ministry of Sports and Pubic Recreation pays tribute to over 200 athletes in over 15 disciplines on July 15 at the BMICH.

Dialog Telekom has been a prominent sponsor of Sri Lankan Sports and is committed to developing talent in Sri Lanka to international standards.

A great feat for a little man from Sri Lank against the giants in the 400M and to beat the greatest giant of them all Michael Johnson, even if it was only in the heats.

It was true grit and absolute conviction that this young lad from the hills always exhibited that took him to international success at the Commonwealth Games of 1998 and successive Asian Games in 1998 and 2002.

This journey of conviction began when he was just six and he entered the ‘seeni-bola’ picking contest at his school’s sports meet. He was placed third and received his first certificate, the thrill and memory of which is firmly etched in his memory.

Talking about his beginnings Sugath says: “The hunger to win grew over the years and could only be satiated by victories.

Having received no training during my initial years of schooling, the world of warming up before a race was so foreign to me.

The only advantage I had was the two years of karate I had done. Was it a change of fate? I do not know, but at the 1992 Central Province Meet Mr. Anura Bandara from Ambagamuwa Maha Vidyalaya offered me the chance to train under him, as he believed I had the potential to yield better results”.

Then came the world of hard work! His day began often at 3 a.m. He would step out of the house in these early hours and walk 2km to the nearest bus stop. Ever since he started training at Ambagamuwa Maha Vidyalaya, he had to travel 18km back and forth to get to school in time for his first class.

And it was not without risk either to quote Sugath: “I recall the days when the mist in Nuwara Eliya was so strong that my friend and I would hold a torch and run to avoid bumping in to each other. We used to cross the Mahaweli River that led to the school ground, hoping that the water level would not have risen.

I still remember the near death experience of crossing the river with my coach, the water level right up to my neck. But not once did I let my bag get wet as this had my books, my spare clothes, and my shoes and this was all I needed to train.

Yet no matter how tired I was, I never let my school work be compromised. Time management was something I acquired from sports and I applied it to my academic work. I passed my GCE A/L’s with 4 Bs which has helped me tremendously in broadening my career prospects today.

About his success Sugath proudly states: “I take great pride in saying that I am the fastest 400M sprinter the country has ever produced. To this day I still hold the national record for both the 200M, 400M and the SAF record for the 4OOM.

All the hardships I experienced only made me stronger and better equipped me to face any challenge that life had destined. Not once have I allowed the things I did not have in life hinder the progress of what I wanted to achieve.

I have lost more races than I have won. I believe that there is no short cut to success.

Discipline, dedication, intensity & determination are factors that contribute a great extent to the final outcome.

These words are engraved in my heart and embedded deep within my soul!”