Personal information | |
---|---|
Full name | Nadeeka Lakmali Bambarenda Liyanage |
Nationality | Sri Lanka |
Born | Elpitiya, Dakunu, Galle, Southern Province, Sri Lanka | 18 September 1981
Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) |
Weight | 60 kg (132 lb) |
Sport | |
Country | Sri Lanka |
Sport | Athletics |
Event | Javelin throw |
Achievements and titles | |
World finals | IAAF World Championship - 2013 |
Personal best | Javelin throw: 60.64 m (2013) NR |
Nadeeka Lakmali Bambarenda Liyanage (born 18 September 1981 in Elpitiya, Galle) is a Sri Lankan javelin thrower. [1] [2] [3] She is regarded one of the finest javelin throwers in Sri Lanka with global fame. [4] She is also attached with the Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force and current national record holder in women's javelin throw event. [5] [6] [7]
Liyaanage won a bronze medal for the same category at the 2007 Asian Athletics Championships in Amman, Jordan, achieving her best throw at 52.59 metres. [8]
Lakmali represented Sri Lanka at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, where she competed for the women's javelin throw. [9] She performed the best throw of 54.28 metres, on her third and final attempt, finishing forty-third overall in the qualifying rounds. [10]
She represented Sri Lanka at the 2010 Commonwealth Games which was held in New Delhi where she finished at seventh place in women's javelin throw event clearing a distance of 53.36 meters. [11] Lakmali improved her personal best and national record to 59.32 metres on 30 June 2013 in Pihtipudas, Finland. [12]
Lakmali gained first place in all 3 stages of 2013 Asian Athletics Grand Prix to win gold after clearing a distance of 56.83m during the first leg which was held at Thammasat University Ground. [13] Later she renewed her national record to 60.16 at the 2013 Asian Athletics Championships in Pune, India along with winning the silver medal in the women's javelin throw event behind China's Li Lingwei. [14] [15] [16] She also qualified for the IAAF world championships in Moscow in August. Just before the world championships, Lakmali competed in Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Forces' Inter-Regiment Athletics Championships where she broke her own national record once again. She achieved 60.64 metres. [17] [6] Lakmali qualified for the finals of the Javelin throw in 2013 IAAF world championships with a best of 60.39m from the Group B. Even though she was not able to match the automatic qualifying mark of 61.50m, she entered the finals as the next best performance from Group A and B. [18] With this performance she became only the second athlete from Sri Lanka after sprinter Susanthika Jayasinghe to reach the final round at an IAAF World Athletics Championship. [19] [20] She finished 12th and last position in the final clearing a distance of 58.16m. [21] [22]
She trained with former Sri Lankan javelin thrower Dilhani Lekamge [23] under until she left their coach A.J.Rodrigo to train elsewhere in 2014. [24] She also represented Sri Lanka at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and finished at 6th place clearing distance of 59.04m in women's javelin throw event. [25] At the 2016 South Asian Games representing Sri Lanka, she claimed bronze medal after clearing a distance of 54.82 meters. [26]
In 2017 she represented her country in India at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships in the women's javelin throw. The event was won by Li Lingwei but significantly Dilhani Lekamge matched her former training partner Nadeeka Lakmali [24] and took the bronze. [27] She also represented Sri Lanka at the 2019 South Asian Games and claimed silver medal in javelin throw event clearing 54.41m meanwhile incidentally Nadeeka Lekamge who herself admires Nadeeka Lakmali as her role model won the gold medal. [28] [29] [30] She also claimed bronze medal at the 2019 Military World Games which was held in Wuhan clearing distance of 52.73m. [31] [32]
Lakmali is a Warrant Officer attached to the 4 Battalion (V), Sri Lanka Army Women’s Corps. [33]
Deshabandu Kameradin Susanthika Jayasinghe is a Sri Lankan retired sprinter, who specialised 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.
Deshabandu 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.
The Sri Lanka Army Women's Corps (SLAWC) is a corps of the Sri Lanka Army. The corps was raised on 1 September 1979. The regimental headquarters of this corps is at Borella, Colombo. Initially, members of this corps were employed in non-combat staff duties but later were employed in field duties.
Sri Lanka competed in the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, People's Republic of China from August 8 to August 24, 2008.The Sri Lankan olympic committee confirmed 4 males and three females have been selected to compete in 5 sports. Later Chinthana Vidanage received a tripartite commission invitation to participate in weightlifting. This now brings the total count to 8 athletes competing in 6 sports.
Li Lingwei is a Chinese track and field athlete who specialises in the javelin throw.
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