Olcott memorial cricket tourney postponed

S M Jiffrey Abdeen-Kandy Sports Correspondent

The much looked forward cricket carnival by the Buddhist Schools the Sir Henry Olcott Memorial Cricket Tournament for schools and old boys which was scheduled to be worked off at the Ananda College grounds, Colombo from November 30 to December 2 has been indefinitely postponed as the wicket at this venue is being relaid.

This tournament was first played in 1999 with Sri Lanka's first Test Cricket captain Bandula Warnapura as the President of this Foundation and the present President is Old Rajan D M Dharmatillake.

According to Dharmatillake a livewire of cricket Dharmaraja College, Kandy, the old boys of the Buddhist Schools had been toying with the idea of having a tournament for Buddhist Schools to promote friendship and also to improve the standard of cricket in these schools from 1995 onwards when they meet after matches at clubs.

When the idea was born in 1999, they decided to invite the schools founded by Buddhist Theosophical Society whose founder was Sir Henry Steele Olcott and the schools concerned were Ananda College, Nalanda College, Mahinda College, Dharmaraja College, Dharmapala College, Maliyadewa College and to this were added Dharmasoka College and Sri Rahula College, Matara.

This turned out to be an annual event with the Old boys organizations of these schools taking turns to organize the three day colourful event with 12 overs per side for the old boys over 40 years and a six-a-side tournament for the present day cricketers.

At the end of the first day's play a gala dinner is also organized for the cricketers and the old boys to meet and exchange ideas and also exchange nostalgic feelings and reminisce the past.

This tournament generates so much of interest that the old boys even come from overseas to play in the matches or participate in the proceedings.

Last year this three-day championship was held in Galle by the Old Mahindians and Mahinda College won the tournament for schools and the Old Boys was also won by the Old Mahindians.

This cricket championship for old boys coupled with a tournament for the present cricketers is the only one of its kind in the country. The saints made up of old boys have a quadrangular tournament for Anthony's College, St Peter's College, St Joseph's College and St Benedict's College.

Remembering the founder of the Buddhist Theosophical Society is great and Sir Henry Steele Olcott pioneered the establishment of Buddhist schools and they later became great educational institutions producing great men who did yeoman service to the country in their own chosen fields.