Fifty TT medals for Dr. Lucas
View(s):Winning fifty medals internationally in a single sports discipline is indeed a unique feat. This was achieved by Dr. Nimal Lucas, the former national table tennis player and the current Chairman of the Selection Committee of the Sri Lanka Table Tennis Association.
The sporting doctor represented Sri Lanka from 1966 to 1971 and later playing in the International Veterans table tennis championships from 2005 to 2015, Dr Lucas had won fifty medals including 20 Gold, 13 Silver and 17 Bronze medals.
As a young lad Dr. Lucas carried the Sri Lanka national flag aloft in the world TT arena and on his retirement the doctor carried on his operations in the World Masters and Veterans competitions. Having made his debut in June 2004 at the World Veterans TT Championship in Yokohama and in the following year at the World Masters Games held in Edmonton Canada the veteran doctor won a silver medal in the Men’s Double event partnering Mohomed Lafir as his first medal.
Participating in the Masters Games in Port Elizabeth, South Africa in April 2006, Lucas won a bronze medal in the Men’s singles event. Competing in the New Zealand Masters Games for the first time in 2007 this veteran doctor from Sri Lanka won a bronze medal and was unfortunate to miss the silver medal. The special feature of the New Zealand Masters Games is unlike in the other international competitions, a player is allowed to play in different age groups and hence having the opportunity in winning more medals.
Dr Lucas participated in the New Zealand Masters Games in 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2015 winning a rich harvest of medals which included 17 Gold, 8 Silver and 11 bronze medals. This paddler doctor’s most memorable year was in 2011 when he won seven gold and two bronze medals in the Master Games in the Kiwi land.
This veteran paddler from the tiny Indian Ocean island went from strength to strength and playing in the Australian Masters Games in 2011, 2013 and in 2015 he showed his prowess to the world by winning 11 medals consisting of 3 gold, 4 silver and 2 bronze medals. Travelling to the city of Stockholm in Sweden in 2010 the doctor won two bronze medals at the Veterans Table Tennis Championship.