Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, and southeast of the Arabian Sea; it is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. Sri Lanka shares a maritime border with India and the Maldives. Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is its legislative capital, and Colombo is its largest city and financial centre.
Deshabandu Kameradin Susanthika Jayasinghe is a Sri Lankan retired sprinter, who specialized in the 100 and 200 metres. She won the Olympic silver medal for the 200m event in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, the second Sri Lankan to win an Olympic medal after Duncan White and the first Asian woman to win an Olympic or World Championship medal in a sprint event. She is also the only Asian athlete to have claimed an Olympic medal in sprint events. She is also the first and only Sri Lankan to win a medal at the World Athletics Championships. Her silver medal achievement at the 2000 Sydney Olympics also stood as the only Olympic medal for a South Asian in athletics event for 21 years before Neeraj Chopra's gold medal achievement at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She is fondly nicknamed as the Asian Black Mare. She has represented Sri Lanka at the Olympics on three occasions in 1996, 2000 and 2008. She is considered one of the most decorated sprinters in Sri Lanka. However, she is also a deemed as a controversial figure in Sri Lanka.
The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the 100-meter (109.36 yd) dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 for men and since 1928 for women. The inaugural World Championships were in 1983.
Kobala Vithanage Damayanthi Dharsha-Kobalavithanage is a retired Sri Lankan athlete who competed in the 200 and 400 metres race events. She is the current Asian Games record holder in women's 200m event and current Asian Athletics Championships record holder in women's 400m event as well as national record holder in women's 400m. She is regarded as one of the greatest track and field athletes to have represented Sri Lanka at international level alongside her teammate Susanthika Jayasinghe. She is also regarded as the most successful Sri Lankan athlete at the Asian Games with a medal haul of four medals including three gold medals and became the first Sri Lankan female athlete to clinch three Asian Games gold medals. She represented Sri Lanka at the Olympics on three occasions in 1992, 2000 and 2004. She also represented Sri Lanka at the Commonwealth Games on four occasions in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006 as well as at the South Asian Games on four occasions.
Dilantha Ranjula Bandara Malagamuwa is a Sri Lankan racing driver currently racing for the Dilango Racing Team which he founded in 2009.
Dharshanapriya Sandun Weerakkody is a professional Sri Lankan cricketer, plays for One Day Internationals for Sri Lanka. Weerakkody is a past pupil of Dharmaraja College, Kandy. A left-handed batsman and a wicketkeeper, he plays first-class cricket for Nondescripts Cricket Club.
Matthew Duncan Abeysinghe is a competitive swimmer who has represented Sri Lanka at numerous international competitions. Abeysinghe trained under his coach and father, Manoj Abeysinghe, with Killer Whale Aquatics, until his departure for higher education, where he resumed his training at Ohio State University in the US. Abeysinghe is regarded as the greatest swimmer and one of the most accomplished athletes Sri Lanka has ever produced.
The 2019 South Asian Games, officially the XIII South Asian Games, was a major multi-sport event which was originally slated to be held from 9 to 18 March 2019 in Kathmandu and Pokhara, Nepal. However, the dates were postponed and the event was held from 1–10 December 2019, coincidentally at the same time as the 2019 Southeast Asian Games in the Philippines. The new dates were confirmed at the South Asian Olympic Council Executive Board meeting in Bangkok on 1 March 2019. The Dasarath Stadium hosted the opening ceremony along with the men's football tournament, with the stadium's renovation after the 2015 earthquake completed in under 10 months with an increased capacity of 20,000, along with the closing ceremony on 10 December.
Kyle Abeysinghe is a Sri Lankan national swimmer who has represented his country at several international competitions. At the domestic level, Abeysinghe holds numerous national records, has been national champion several times, and is a member of the Killer Whale Aquatic Club, under his coach and father, Manoj Abeysinghe.
Morawakkorakoralege Walter Fonseka Abeykoon was a Ceylonese civil servant and served as the Inspector General of Police between 1959 and 1963.
Vinoj Suranjaya De Silva Muthumuni also simply known as Vinoj De Silva or Vinoj Suranjaya is a Sri Lankan track and field athlete and a national record holder in men's 200m.
Sri Lanka competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Originally scheduled to take place from 24 July to 9 August 2020, the Games were postponed to 23 July to 8 August 2021, because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was the nation's eighteenth appearance at the Summer Olympics, with the exception of the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal. Seven of the nation's previous Olympic appearances were under the name Ceylon.
Tissa Srilal Abeykoon [Sinhala]), was an actor in Sri Lankan cinema, theater and television. One of the most popular television actors in Sri Lanka, he is most notable for the trade mark role "Appuwa" in the television serial Kopi Kade. A talented singer, Abeykoon is the only Sri Lankan singer to sing 500 songs for cassette after singer Nihal Nelson.
Abeykoon Mudiyansalage Yupun Priyadarshana, known as Yupun Abeykoon, also referred to as Yupun Priyadarshana is a Sri Lankan track and field athlete and a national record holder in men's 100m, men's 200m and in men's indoor 60m. He currently resides in Italy as he went on a scholarship to Italy in 2015. He is also attached to the Electronic and Mechanical Engineering Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army and represents Army Sports Club. He is currently regarded as the fastest Sri Lankan man as well as fastest South Asian man in men's 100m and 200m disciplines. On 3 July 2022, he became the first South Asian to break the 10-Second barrier for the men's 100 meters event at the Resisprint International competition, with a timing of 9.96 seconds, in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
The following lists notable events that will occur and take place during 2022 in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka currently competes at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England from 28 July to 8 August 2022. This is Sri Lanka's 17th appearance at the Commonwealth Games.
The men's 100 metres at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, as part of the athletics programme, took place at the Alexander Stadium from 2 and 3 August 2022.
Nilani Ratnayake also spelt as Nilani Rathnayake or Nilani Rathnayaka is a Sri Lankan steeplechaser. She is the first and only Sri Lankan female steeplechase runner ever in history to have completed running the 3000 meters steeplechase in less than under 10 minutes. She is currently attached with the Sri Lanka Army.
