Hiran and Chamodi spear through in junior segment
Hiran Jayasekara (left) competes in the foil event final yesterday at the Royal MAS Arena - Pic by M.D. Nissanka
Hiran Jayasekara and Chamodi Prathibha speared their way to the top to become the best among young swordsmen and swordswomen at the 4th Sri Lanka Junior National Fencing Championships held at the Royal MAS Arena.
Jayasekara was crowned the Best Boy Fencer while Prathibha became the Best Girl Fencer in the fourth installation of the country’s epic junior fencing competition conducted by National Fencing Association of Sri Lanka (NFASL).
Jayasekara, currently training at Tushy Fencing Club in the United State of America, came to Sri Lanka a couple of days before the tournament and clinched the title with ease. The 19-year-old also impressed by beating Tharindu Madumal in the foil final of the Senior National tournament yesterday.
“It’s exciting. I came to the country two days before the tournament started, and hopeful of winning the Senior Championships as well,” soon after his win after the foil duel, Jayasekara said.
With a remarkable performance throughout the Junior Nationals, Chamodi Prathibha of Princess of Wales College, Moratuwa, clinched the National Junior Girls title. Royal College, Colombo were impressive as a unit and it was sufficient for the fencers to guide the Reid Avenue school to the Team Championship of the Junior Nationals.
Royal pushed aside Mahawatte Maha Vidyalaya, Kandy to the second position in the team event. Junior Girls champ Prathibha’s performance was a merit for her school Princess of Wales, who were the Team Champions in the Girls’ segment. Pushpadana Girls’ School, Kandy become the second best girls’ team.
Fencing produced 26 bronze medals at the last South Asian Games 2019, held in Kathmandu, Nepal and this feat is considered as an impressive leap since the sport was introduced to Sri Lanka in 2008.
A total of 224 fencers from nine clubs have registered for this year’s combined national championships, which began on Thursday. The four-day competition will wind up today after the finals of the Senior National Championship.