Sports to be developed in Central Province

S M Jiffrey ABDEEN Kandy Sports Correspondent

Sports will be developed in a big way in the Central Province to make it the Best Province in the island in the year 2015, said the Chief Minister of the Central Province Sarath Ekanayake.

We have set our goals towards achieving it and it is not an Utopian idea and we mean business and we have the material and have to give the sportswomen and sportsmen the necessary guidance and encouragement.

First we must have the required infrastructure to cut our path towards these goals. We have already started on it and a modern stadium with all facilities is under construction at Digana in the model town of Rajawella which is about 15 kilometres. It is located in the mid country dry zone and has a lesser rainfall than the city of Kandy and this will be of great advantage for sports.

The first stage of this stadium which is nearly ten acres in extent has been completed and a very large sum has been already spent.

The next stage will be the planting of grass. Once it is completed, games like softball cricket, soccer, netball, volleyball, athletics etc could be played and this will reduce the demand for grounds in Kandy. A very nominal fee will be charged for the users of this ground. We may also add a swimming later on.

Already the perimeter walls have been constructed at a cost running into millions. This will be the biggest stadium in the Central Province and will be managed by the Central Province Ministry of Sports.

We have already drawn up a plan to train the coaches in various sports as this would reach a very large area specially at a grass roots level and towards achieving we have enlisted the support of the Police Stations and the Divisional Secretaries of the respective Divisions in the Province which numbers over 60 and the public could be reached through the Grama Niladharis and Sports Officers.

We have provided the necessary sports equipment for the sportsmen and sportswomen participating in the National Sports Festival and last year we spent nearly Rs 70 million and they finished second.

Central Province especially Kandy has an excellent record in producing top class boxers for over 60 years now. It is far numerous to recall their names. MAS Holdings had recently constructed a modern boxing ring at the Industrial Park, Pallekele and this should be a boon to boxers. Then there are also boxing rings at St Sylvester's College, Vidyartha College and Peradeniya Central College.

In swimming we have top grade swimming pool at the Peradeniya University and there are swimming pools available at Hillwood College, Dharmaraja College, Kingswood College and Mahamaya College where meets could be conducted.

Mahamaya Girls College and Trinity College have been faring excellently at the local swimming meets. This sport will be taken to other schools as well.

Where cricket is concerned we have three test venues in the Central Province and two of them have floodlit facilities. They are the Rangiri Dambulu International Cricket Stadium, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and the Asgiriya Cricket Stadium. The construction of Pallekele Cricket Stadium has provided the cricket fans in Kandy and the areas surrounding an opportunity to witness international cricket matches in a stadium which is rated among the best in the world.

Three World Cup matches were played here and the Australian Cricketers also played here three months ago. In 2012 a number of World Cup Twenty 20 matches will be played here.

In Sunil Fernando the Province has a top class coach and that the Managing Coach of Sri Lanka Cricket Malcolm Perera is back in Kandy, we should make great headway in the field of cricket especially in schools.

In rugby Kandy Sports Club have moved down all opposition and schools like Trinity, St Anthony's, Kingswood, Vidyartha have made good progress and they should improve on it. Rugby could be played at Nittawela, Bogambara, and Peradeniya and a third ground for Vidyartha College is under construction at Nittawela and this should further promote this game.

In hockey we have an international stadium with astro turf facilities in Nandimithra Ekanayake International Hockey Stadium in Matale which is the only one in operation in the country at present.

The first Hockey Academy in the country has been started in Matale to train and coach young hockey players.

Matale and Kandy have produced top hockey players but employment takes them out of the Province but in the long run, they serve the national cause. Soccer in Kandy has been not what it was producing top class players like T M Deen, Mahinda Aluwihare, Tom Ossen just to name a few who had represented the country with distinction. Steps will be taken to popularise this sport.

Two floodlit courts has been constructed at Kingswood College and St Anthony's Girls College with the assistance of the Ministry of Sports and this has helped to promote basketball in the province and as the President of the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation, steps will be taken to popularise this sport in other schools.

Likewise sports like netball and volleyball too will be developed in schools and clubs.

Finally we have the best golf course in the country in Victoria Golf and Country Resort which this year has been adjudged as the 'Best Golf Course in the Sub-Continent'.

This beautiful golf course has been ranked among the '100 Most Beautiful Golf Courses in the world' which is a great honour to a country which is making giant strides in attracting tourists to Sri Lanka.