Susanthika recieves her best Medal
Dinesh WEERAWANSA
The motherhood is the most treasured moment for any woman, no matter
what she had achieved in life before. One could go places and become a
celebrity but the most cherished in a woman’s life is becoming a mother.
This is exactly what our sprint queen Susanthika Jayasinghe
experienced on Tuesday when she gave birth to a baby boy, her ultimate
goal after hanging her spikes last year after a distinguished
international career since 1993.
Undoubtedly, the 33-year-old woman sprinter is the most successful
athlete that Sri Lanka has ever produced. She rewrote local sports
history, winning Sri Lanka’s first Olympic medal in 52 years.
Her timing of 22.28 seconds to secure women’s 200m bronze medal at
the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games is the most precious moment in Sri Lanka’s
sporting history.
Besides the Olympic glory in Australia nine years ago, she had many
‘firsts’ for her country, winning medals at the IAAF World Championship,
IAAF World Cup, gold medals at Asian Games and Asian Championship. That
is apart from many gold and silver medals she has won at South Asian
Games and other regional meets. True that she would value all those
medals which have been earned through dedication, devotion and her pure
talent.
But the most precious gift in Jayasinghe’s world from now onwards
would be her new born baby boy who would add thousands of ‘gold medals’
to the women’s sprinter’s world with her husband cum coach Dhammika
Nandakumara, who too has represented Sri Lanka in athletics.
Jayasinghe’s career is an example to any rural athlete. She had
nothing but her talent to depend on but eventually it was her born
skills which transformed the rural girl from Warakapola to a celebrated
woman athlete who prominently marked Sri Lanka in the international
‘athletic map’. She has had many ups and downs, surviving many tense
moments in her life. But she had courage and determination to beat all
odds and emerge victorious in every sphere.
It was Jayasinghe who was instrumental in opening a new chapter in
Sri Lanka’s athletic history, winning her country’s first ever IAAF
World Championship medal. She finished second behind Zahanna Pintusevich
of Ukraine to secure women’s 200m silver at the IAAF World Championship
in Athens, 1997. What is most admirable in Jayasinghe’s career is the
fact that she was able to win another IAAF World Championship medal
exactly a decade later - a bronze in Osaka, 2007. This is not an easy
task for an athlete to perform, especially in sprints.
Ever since, Jayasinghe’s dream was to become a mother. Even after
winning her last international medal in Osaka two years ago, Jayasinghe
told me that she is eagerly looking forward to have her first child soon
and that motherhood is second to none.
Recalling the hard but enjoyable times her mother has had with a
‘big’ family, Jayasinghe had many dreams of becoming a mother. That even
prompted her to take extra care of her sisters’ kids.
But today, Jayasinghe has got that most valuable gift which she could
not win during her ‘track life’. However, the motherhood would not take
Jayasinghe completely away from athletics. She is keen to ‘give
something back’ to the nation but she is still undecided on how she is
going to do that. Definitely Jayasinghe has a wide range of experience.
She is ready to share that with the future generation and ‘tomorrow’s
gold medallists’ in a manner in which would not affect the joy she is
experiencing after becoming a mother. Perhaps, Jayasinghe’s son could
well emulate his proud mother’s feats. But it is too early to predict
anything. Nevertheless, Jayasinghe would give Sri Lanka athletics many
more gifts in a different capacity in the years to come. The Daily News
wishes Jayasinghe, her baby boy and husband all success in the years to
come! |