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.
Major Deshamanya Duncan M. White MBE, ED was a Sri Lankan sportsman. He was the first Ceylonese athlete to win an Olympic medal, winning silver in the 400-metre hurdles at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, England. He was also the second South Asian to have won an Olympic medal in track and field after Norman Pritchard of India, with the third being Susanthika Jayasinghe, another Sri Lankan, who won a silver medal in the 200 metres in 2000.
Sri Lanka competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia. The nation won its first Olympic medal since 1948. Sri Lanka has sent their ever largest number of competitors (18) for an Olympic game in this event.
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.
Christine Sonali Merrill, also simply known as Christine Merill, is a former Sri Lankan–American track and field athlete and mechanical engineer. During her career, she specialized in the 400m hurdles event and also occasionally competed in 100m, 200m, 100m hurdles, 4 × 100m relay and 4 × 400m relay events.
Nadeeka Lakmali Bambarenda Liyanage is a Sri Lankan javelin thrower. She is regarded one of the finest javelin throwers in Sri Lanka with global fame. She is also attached with the Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force and current national record holder in women's javelin throw event.
Matthew Hudson-Smith is a British track and field sprinter who specialises in the 400 metres and is the 5th fastest athlete of all-time over the distance. In September 2024 he was ranked as the number one 400m runner in the world and has won six British titles, five Diamond League events, two individual European titles, an individual Olympic silver medal, World Championships silver and bronze individual medals and an individual Commonwealth silver medal. He has also won a number of relay titles including an Olympic bronze medal, World Championships bronze medal, two European gold medals, one European silver medal, one European bronze medal and a Commonwealth Games gold medal. Hudson-Smith also holds the European and British 4x400m records (2:55.83) along with the GB Team who ran in the final of the men's 4x400m event in the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Nimali Waliwarsha Konda Liyanarachchi is a Sri Lankan 800 m runner and current national record holder in women's 1500m event. She is also believed to be the first Sri Lankan woman to have competed in steeplechase events. She became the first Sri Lankan woman to complete the distance of 3000 metres in steeplechase event under 11 minutes. She won the best athlete award twice at the Presidential award ceremonies by the Sports Ministry including the Most Outstanding Sportswoman of the Year in 2015. She is currently attached to Sri Lanka Air Force.
Bogoda Appuhamilage Don Wickrama Bogoda, popularly known as Wickrama Bogoda, was an actor in Sri Lankan cinema and theater. Primarily known for his character acting in both stage plays and movies, he played a leading role in the movie Golu Hadawatha.
Aruna Darshana is a Sri Lankan sprinter specialising in the 400 metres. He was tipped by many in the circles that he could follow the footsteps of former veteran athlete Sugath Thilakaratne. He won the men's 400m event during the 2018 National Athletics Championships by clocking at 46.16 seconds.
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.
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. 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. 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.
Kotambewaththe Gedara Dilshi Maheesha Shyamali Kumarasingha also simply known as K. G. D. M. S. Kumarasinghe or Dilshi Kumarasinghe aka Shyamali Kumarasinghe is a Sri Lankan track and field athlete and a national record holder in women's 800m. She is currently coached by Susantha Fernando.
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.
Kaushalya Madushani, also known as Kawshalya Madushani Edirippulilage or Kaushalya Madhushani, was a Sri Lankan track and field athlete who mainly competed in the hurdles event. She was a five-time national champion in the women's 400m hurdles. She was the defending national champion in women's 400m hurdles prior to her death when she defended her title successfully in 2022. She was attached to the Sri Lankan Army.
The following lists notable events that took place during the year 2023 in Sri Lanka.
Nadeesha Ramanayake is a Sri Lankan track and field athlete who competes mainly in the 400 metres sprint. She won gold medal at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships held in Bangkok in the 400m women's event. She is a member of the Sri Lanka Army Women's Corps.
Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Tharushi Dilsara Karunaratne is a Sri Lankan middle-distance runner who competes mainly in the 800 metres. She won a gold medal at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships held in Bangkok in the 400m women's event and also the broke the 25 year old Asian record in the event.
Sri Wickrama is a 2023 Sri Lankan Sinhala biographical history film directed by Mohan Niyaz and produced by Dr. Gihan Godakanda for Vendol Media Network. The film is focused on the rise to the throne and the fall of the regime of Sri Wickrama Rajasinha, the last king of Sri Lanka. The film stars Akhila Dhanuddhara as King Sri Wickrama whereas the supporting cast includes Chulakshi Ranathunga, Sriyantha Mendis, Shyam Fernando, Roshan Pilapitiya and Chanchala Warnasooriya.
