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by Dinesh Weerawansa reporting from South Korea

BUSAN, Thursday - Injured Sri Lankan woman sprinter Susanthika Jasyasinghe will be out of action for at least two months after a hamstring injury forced her to withdraw from women's 200m final at the 14th Asian Games here today.

Jayasinghe came to the nearby warm-up grounds of the main Sajik Stadium this morning to prepare for her 200m final, in which she was the hot favorite to strike gold and complete a sprint double. It was then that Jayasinghe found hard to stretch her right leg with a pain in her hamstring muscle. She had aggravated that injury in yesterday's 200m semi-final heats but has not expected it not to affect her so badly.

The Olympic and World Championship medallist, who won the 100m gold here with a new Asian Games record time of 11.15 seconds on Tuesday, had taken a strong pain killer, which had not answered. It was only an hour before the race that she finally decided to pull out with a broken heart.

There were dejected faces all around the Sri Lanka camp see their most fancied athlete to win three gold medals being out of action.

"My leg is giving trouble, I am not running Dhammika aiya. I am going to the hospital now," Jayasinghe broke the bad news to her husband Dhammika Nandakumara, himself a former Sri Lanka athlete.

Jayasinghe was rushed to a nearby hospital by the Games organisers for an MRI scan, which had disclosed a rupture in her right hamstring. "It is a strain in her right hamstring muscle and take time to recover. She has been asked to bed rest for six weeks," Sri Lanka team doctor, Shiromi Pilapitiya De Alwis said after she returned from hospital with Jayasinghe.

The Lankan sprint queen was in tears for several minutes after she came to know that she could not stretch her leg even after a strong pain killer. "I never expected this would happen to me. It is a sure gold medal. I won't be so dejected and upset if this had happened to me in a race with Marion Jones and Zahana Pintusevich. But here at the Asian Games, there is hardly any contest for me and I would have definitely given another gold medal for Sri Lanka. I am sad that I could not do. My dream of a sprint double has been shattered, I may not be able to win that in my life again," she said in a heart-breaking voice.

Jayasinghe said she is even more sad because Sri Lanka lost that 200m medal completely. "I could have even made my mind even if (Damayanthi) Darsha had won that.

She would have easily won that in my absence if she had taken part. Our Sri Lanka team lost a gold medal at the end," she added.

The injury to Jayasinghe not only took a possible women's 200m off Sri Lanka but the women's 4 x 100m too. Sri Lanka women's team were fancied to take the gold, but the absence of Jayasinghe now leaves the team in the wilderness with only three sprinters after stand-bye Sriyani Kulawansa left for Sri Lanka this morning. Kulawansa, after firing at officials for making her only a stand-bye for the 100m relay, made a controversial pull out of women's 100m hurdles, complaining of a groin injury. Later she demanded to return home early and the team officials had no option but to advance her flight.

Of the original six-member women's 4 x 100m relay squad, Pradeepa Herath was not available after migrating to Italy following her marriage but no replacement was made as Kulawansa was there as a stand-bye.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's Niluka Karunaratne made a first round exit in the opening day of the 14th Asian Gasmes badminton tournament which began today. Karunaratne lost his men's singles first round qualifier to Hong Kong's Lok Tin Tam in straight sets 6-15, 4-15. Sri Lanka's Ranil Tharaka is down to taken on Antonie Abou Jaoude in the men's 78kg welterweight preliminary round of the taekwondo competition tomorrow (11).

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