Chinese Doctors diagnose discrepancy in leg length:

Special spike for Ambepitiya

Dinesh WEERAWANSA reporting from China

Chinese medical experts have designed a special spike for Sri Lanka’s ace sprinter Shehan Ambepitiya.

Sri Lanka team officials yesterday referred injured Lankan sprinter to Chinese doctors and sports medicine experts. After a thorough investigation, the medical experts here have diagnosed that Ambepitiya has a problem with his ‘body balance’ and need to wear a special spike for his right leg. “Medical experts who examined Ambepitiya did a foot analysis and diagnosed a discrepancy in his leg length. There is a slight difference in his right leg,” Dr. Seewali Jayawickrema of the Sports Medicine Department said today.

Dr Jayawickrema was of the opinion that Ambepitiya has a chance to break the ten-second barrier in the 100m dash in future if he could overcome the discrepancy, making a modified right spike with a slightly thicker innersole. “But it all depends on how soon he adjusts to that. It would reduce his pain symptoms. He needs to undergo a full body analysis to ascertain the complete nature of the discrepancy,” the Lankan sports medicine expert said.

The new right spike tailor-made for Ambepitiya will be ready by tomorrow and the Lankan sprinter is expected to have his first workout with it at the training venue on Wednesday evening. (Orthotics is the branch of medical engineering concerned with the design and fitting of devices such as braces in the treatment of orthopaedic disorders.)

The Lankan sprinter sustained a leg injury during last month’s Commonwealth Games and was forced to withdraw from the semi finals of the men’s 100m event. He originally planned to skip both the 100m and 200m here and compete only in the 4 x 100m relay. However, the new spike has given him fresh hopes and he may take part in the 100m event. “It is too early to predict anything. Since there are a few days to go for his events, he has time to settle,” Chef-de-Mission of the Sri Lanka contingent Prema Pinnawale said.

Lanka beat Oman

Sri Lanka’s Beach Volleyball team continued their excellent form when they beat Oman by two sets to nil in their 16th Asian Games men’s championships at the Guangzhou Beach here today.

Showing excellent form in their exciting flood-lit Pool ‘H’ game, Sri Lankan pair of Mahesh and Wasantha survived a tense finish to secure a two sets to nil win over Oman’s pair of Shalifa and Abdullah. The Lankan took the game in 41 minutes 21-19, 23-21.

However, Sri Lanka’s pair of Nirosha and Leena lost their women’s Pool ‘C’ match to Thailand’s Yupa and Kulna two nil 9-21, 13-21 in 26 minutes.

Sri Lanka’s Saman Silva was out pointed by Iderkhu Enkhjargal of Mongolia 2:9 in their men’s 56kg boxing bout of the Asian Games.

In badminton, Sri Lanka suffered its third loss for the day when Subodha Kumari Yapa went down to Japan’s Ai Goto in their women’s singles first round match 8-21, 12-21 in a one-sided game which lasted just 16 minutes.

Maiya Maneza of Kazakhstan won the gold in Women’s 63kg weightlifting in Dongguan. China gold haul went past 70 as their men’s 4*100m freestyle relay team came first in the swimming competition with a time of three minutes and 16.34 seconds.

A dismal show

Sri Lanka continued its dismal performance in sailing, rowing and swimming, finishing amongst the worst performers in the preliminary rounds itself.

Lakshan Gunawardena (seventh in men’s mistral race 5), Avishka de Alwis (tenth in men’s dinghy optimist race 6), Krishan Welandagoda (11th in men’s open laser radial) and Suresni Gunaratne (eighth in women’s dinghy optimist) once again failed to justify their presence here in any way. Sri Lanka’s Sanjeev de Silva and Kanishka Jayaratne made rowing team’s contribution to their country’s dismal performance when they finished last in lightweight men’s doubles sculls repecharge race 2 with a timing of only 6:59.43.

The duo were placed third after the first 500m but gradually lost their place by the end. Japan’s Kenta Tadachi and Kenta Kotani combined effectively to win the race in 6:40.17.

Swimmer Heshan Unamboowe was off colour once again, clocking a highly unimpressive 59.00 seconds to finish seventh in his men’s 100m backstroke first round heat 4, won by Japan’s Ryosuke Irie in just 55.57 seconds. Unamboowe was placed 15th out of 29 swimmers who competed in the heats.

Junya Koga, who won heat three, had the most impressive timing of them all, clocking 54.45 seconds.

Madhavi Weeratunga was no exception as she finished sixth in women’s 50m freestyle heat 2 to make a first round exit. She clocked a leisured 29.60 seconds against Yayoi Matusumoto’s 25.75 to win the heat. Weeratunga was placed 17th out of 24 swimmers who competed in women’s 50m freestyle heats.

Heading the list of medal prospects after the heats was China’s Zhe Si Li (25.41) and her team mate Yi Tang (25.22).

Rohan Sirisena and Ishara Madurangi’s winning run in table tennis tournament came to an end when they were beaten in their mixed doubles pre-quarter final match by a far superior Chinese combination of Ching Cheng and Chih Chi Wu by three sets to nil in just 13 minutes 8-11, 8-11, 5-11.

At Foshan Gymnasium, Sri Lanka’s Suresh Pattiarachchi could not match the superior technique and powerful left hooks of Meder Mamakeev of Kazakhstan who won on points 7-1. The first round of the bout was equally contested but Mamakeev cut lose and proved his class, collecting three points each in second and third rounds.

Earlier in the morning, Thilini Jayasinghe lost her women’s singles first round match of the badminton competition to Indian Aditi Mutatkar in straight sets 11-21, 19-21. Having lost the first set in eight minutes, Olympian Jayasinghe came back strongly in the evenly contested second set. But she failed to take that vital final point which would have stretched the game to a three setter. In the women’s doubles round one of the badminton competition worked off this afternoon, Thailand’s Aroonkesorn and Voravichitchaikul beat Sri Lanka’s Subodha Kumari Yapa and Jayasinghe in straight sets 21-5, 21-9.

China’s thrust for gold continued as they continued to extend their gold haul. China won the gold in men’s 4x200m freestyle relay clocking seven minutes and 7.68 seconds.

Li Xueying of China came first in women’s 58kg weightlifting with a total lift of 238kg. China’s Liu Xin won the gold in women’s points race of cycling track with a score of 34. China also won the gold in men’s canoe double of canoe/kayak slalom and also added women’s slalom single title through Zou Yingying.

The host nation extended their dominance to table tennis as well, winning the gold medal in women’s team event, beating Taiwan in the final. However, Taiwan bounced back to take the gold in men’s team championships in table tennis, beating Uzbekistan by two matches to one in the final.

Today’s schedule

Wednesday will be another busy day for Sri Lanka contingent at the 16th Asian Games starting with Madhavi Weeratunga’s women’s 100m freestyle heat 1 at Aoti Aquatic Centre. At Guangzhou Gymnasium, Sri Lanka’s Rohan Sirisena will take on Indian Sarath Achanta, this year’s Egypt open champion, in the pre-quarter finals of the men’s singles in the table tennis championship.

Sri Lanka sailing team who has been suffering a series of humiliating defeats, will once again be seen in action in the seventh and the eighth rounds of their respective races men’s mistral, men’s dinghy optimist, women’s dinghy optimist and open laser radial at the Shanwei Water Sports Centre. Rower Sanjeev de Silva will try his luck once again when he competes in lightweight men’s singles sculls event at the International Rowing Centre here on Wednesday morning.

Sri Lanka’s Gayan Kumara will take on Yazan Alsadeeq in their men’s 87 kg event of the taekwondo competition.

In beach volleyball, Sri Lanka is due to take on Kazakhstan (women’s) and Yemen (men’s). GUANGZHOU, Tuesday