23rd National Youth Sports Festival:

Five new meet records set up

Yasaratne GAMAGE

The 23rd National Youth Sports Festival first day ended with five new meet records in under 20 boys’ and over 20 men’s long jump, men’s over 20 high jump, girls’ 800 metres under 20, and 200 metres in the same age category.

M I M Mifran from Ampara, the best athlete in under 20 category last year, leapt a distance of 7.04 metres in the under 20 boy’s long jump to set up the first new meet record of the day and he erased his own record which he set up last year in Nawalapitiya.

L P S Nilanga of Urban Youth entered the meet record book when he cleared a distance of 7.45 metres in the men’s over 20 long jump where he broke the existing record of M G A Sandaruwan of Anuradhapura.

G L A S D Peiris of Urban Youth leapt 0.61 metres more to overcome the last year record of K K R P Kaluarachchi, a height of 1.43 metres in the women’s over 20 high jump.

In the girls’ under 20, 800 metres W K L A Nimali sprinted the event in 2.11:12 minutes to set up a new meet record and she whipped away R A C Jayamini’s timing in 2010.

It was a tough battle between last year record holder, G A I S Dayananda of Ratnapura and S A J P Senanayake of Kegalle district in the 800 metres race of boys’ under 20 where the latter could finish the event just a second before Dayananda, and went on to register a new meet record with a timing of 25.01 seconds.

A total of 33 events worked off on the first day, while men’s and women’s kabadi finals and men’s football finals were shifted to Maharagama Sri Lanka Youth Centre due to inclement weather conditions.

Today is the second day of the meet where 37 track and field event are scheduled to take place.

Under 20 men’s long jump: 1. M I M Mifran 7.04 m, 2.W K M Udaya Kumara 6.88 m, 3. D M D L Dissanayake 6.78 m.

Over 20 men’s long jump: 1. L P S Nilanga 7.45 m, 2. K W M A H Bandara 7.12 m, 3. A N R Sachith6.89 m.

Over 20 men’s high jump: 1. G L A S De Peiris 2.04 m, 2. M W V R N Viyange 1.98m, 3. K S Laksitha 1.95 m.

Under 20 women’s 800 metres: 1. W K L A Nimali 2:11.12 minutes, 2. Y M I Silva 2:18. 11 minutes, 3. U K N Ratnayake2:21.06 minutes.

Under 20 women’s 200 metres: 1. S A J P Senanayake 25.01 seconds, 2. G A I S Dayananda 26.01 seconds, 3. I G I Srimali 26.65 seconds.