• Former sprinter Damayanthi Darsha talks about the current state of athletics in Sri Lanka

Damayanthi Darsha has a special place among the great names of the golden era of Sri Lankan athletics. She represented Sri Lanka among the best in the international stage for almost 16 years, with nine Asian-level medals, including three Asian Games gold medals and four Asian championship gold medals. The Daily Morning Sports was fortunate to have a chat with the former champion this week.

Below are excerpts from the interview.

What’s going on these days?

I currently live in Australia with my family. I was hoping to do something for the future of our country when I stopped training. But no one cared about us. So I decided to migrate for the sake of my children. I first came to Australia in 1993 for a training session with the Australian champion Cathy Freeman. After that, I visited the country several times for the Olympics and Commonwealth Games.

Are you doing any coaching in Australia?

Yes. There are many children here from Sri Lanka whom I train. I also had an academy in Sri Lanka, which is now run by my assistant coach Prasanna Amarasekara.

As a former Olympian, how do you view the current status of athletics in Sri Lanka?

As I always say, it was the golden age when Sriyani, Susi, Sugath, and I were athletes. At the time, a big team would get qualified for tournaments. And we have won medals in every athletic championship. Nowadays, there is no real thirst for medals. 

For example, in 2002, when I won the gold medal at the Asian Games, I was not even given a cup of tea. At the time, our athletes were bringing in medals in almost every tournament related to athletics.

I am not saying that the current athletes are incompetent. But there is no system that can properly help athletes move from the junior level to the national level.

The influence of union officials is the main reason for the downfall. In short, under the new Sports Minister, several new laws were introduced to sports associations to prevent fraud and corruption. But these officials have been against these laws. They’ve even taken legal action. As a former vice president of the association, I was the only person who opposed such action. Unfortunately, people who understand the sport have no place in associations today.

When compared with the national level of athletics back in the day, how do you see the decline in the skills of the athletes at the national level today?

For example, I still hold the tournament record in the 100m women’s event at the Asian Youth Athletics Championship. So you should have an idea about the change that has taken place over the past 20 years.

It is not a lack of talent among these athletes. There are great, talented athletes in Sri Lanka. But Sri Lanka lacks coaches.There is a big problem when it comes to technology and being up-to-date in today’s world. Today, even if you were to visit a stadium, there are many coaches. I am of the opinion that certain standards need to be established.

What is your opinion regarding national champions leaving the country?

If we talk about the last incident in this regard, the athlete in question had a good chance of winning the event. If he still chose to ignore such an opportunity and leave as he did, it means that our game has fallen to that state. I will never justify his actions; it is wrong. But even a national champion has received the message that he is unsafe within the athletic structure that protects players at the national level.

Is there hope for change?

There are talented people in our country. Yupun Abeykoon cannot be forgotten. But these athletes have made a lot of effort to reach their level of expertise. That kind of hard work and technical knowledge as well as training are not available within the country. Under these conditions, athletes should at least be sent abroad. Or, the technology should be brought into the country. 

You can’t win in today’s world by running on grass tracks as was done back then. We only have two synthetic tracks. How can we achieve an international-level standard? Because, Sri Lankan athletes who compete at the  international level are competing with opponents who have superior training and technology.

You used to work with the Olympians’ Association, didn’t you? Is it defunct now?

It is still active. And through this association, the “Allianz” company joined us and provided insurance to athletes representing Sri Lanka in the Olympics. But they have been prevented from continuing to do so. 

Sri Lanka has had roughly 104 people participate in the Olympics. About 100 of them are still alive. There are about 30 left in the country. It is a pity that they have not received the recognition due to them. If a Member of Parliament is provided with a pension after five years, then sports persons should also ideally receive a similar contribution.