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6th September 1998

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14th Annual Asian Basketball Confederation Championships in Japan.

Lanka to face China

By Saif Izzadeen

The Sri Lanka junior women's basketball team will take part at the 14th Annual Asian Basketball Confederation Championships in Japan. The tournament will be held from September 13 to 22 at Tokushima.

The press conference to introduce the team was held at the Hilton Hotel on Thursday.

The team will take wing to Japan on September 9. Sri Lanka has been grouped alongside China, Malasiya and Laos. Sri Lanka will play their first match on September 13 against defending champions China.

Sri Lanka's next game will be against Malaysia on September 14 and their last match will be against Laos on September15. The chances of Sri Lanka winning against China look rather slim but they will certainly try hard to win against Malaysiya and Laos.

The other teams taking part in the tournament are: Japan, Kyrgystan and the Philippines from Group B, Korea, India, Hong Kong and Macau from Group C with Chinese Taipei, Thailand and Uzbekistan making up Group D

The tournament is being held for the 14th time with Sri Lanka participating for the third time only. Fourteen teams will participate in the event.

The defending champions are China. The previous tournament was held in 1996 in Thailand, where the team under the leadership of Nilusha Dilrukshi ended up in 11th position from 13 teams.

The participating team from Sri Lanka this year will also be led by Nilusha Dilrukshi. Only three players have survived from the 1996 team.

The team underwent strenuous training at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium.

When The Sunday Times spoke to the captain, Nilusha Dilrukshi she said, "The team has visions of winning the tournament. However we know that the task will not be easy. But we will give off our best.

Team coach Supun Wimal told The Sunday Times: "This year's tournament will be tough. However if we perform to true potential, we can wind up in a better position".

The team will comprise 13 players and 4 officials.

When The Sunday Times spoke to the team manager Francis Perera, he said: "When you compare our team's standard with China and Korea, there is a huge difference. However, our main aim is to beat Malasiya and Laos and qualify for the second round".

The team has been in training from June 17 and they are in good shape. The team has been together for three months and are playing together as a unit in order to bring glory to the motherland.


St. Michael's in tennis

St. Michael's Batticaloa will be seen in action at the Public Schools' boys under-10 and under-12 age group tennis championships that has been rescheduled to be played at the National Tennis Centre Courts,at Greenpath.

The championships will be held from September 9 to 11.

The schools participating in the age group are:

Under-10

Group A - Royal, De Mazenod, St. Michael's;

Group B - Ananda, St. Benedict's and St. Joseph's.

Under-12

Group A - Ananda, St. Benedict's, Nalanda, Thurstan, S. Thomas' Mount Lavinia, St. Michael's;

Group B - Royal, D.S. Senanayake, St. Joseph's, De Mazenod, St. Sebastians, S. Thomas' Prep.

Meanwhile the National Schools Games' tennis championships will be held from September 19 to 21 at the National Tennis Courts at Greenpath.

(AF)


ROVER PINPOINTS...

Beating it at the start

A top swimmer, who did not want to be badly beaten in a race abroad, when he found that all the other swimmers in that race had better timings than he, preferred to get disqualified on a foul start.

Rover wonders whether this was what this swimmer was sent abroad for. It cost the authorities some money to send him.

Rover says it really didn't matter if he had won or lost, he should have taken part.

Do we need coaches?

A bigwig has refused to accept the coaches report, while entertaining the Manager's report only, in a leading sports body of Sri Lanka.

Troubles at the start

A Ministry sponsored swimmer from the outstations skipped a few events that he thought he had no chance at all at without being humiliated, Rover learns.

Rover also learns that a few female swimmers too failed to report to the starter and the Manager, a male, could not force them to do so because they were in the female changing rooms. What a waste of money........ and time.

What a chase!

A sports official involved in cycling was chased away by his superior much to the dismay of the chief guest at the Track Cycling Championships at the Sports Ministry Complex, in front of the Cycling Federation office too.

Fivestar only!

Rover learns that the Sri Lanka cricket team is demanding they be put up in a five star hotel if they are to participate in the Commonwealth Games starting on September 9

Rover also learns that the Indian Cricket team will be staying at the Athletic Village which is a demand made by the Indian Olympic committee to the Indian Cricket Board

The Sports Ministry has requested the Cricket Board to provide a Five Star Hotel for our cricketers.

Rover scores again

Rover's exposure of the slippery diving boards at the Sugathadasa Stadium has brought instant results.


Royal's dream becomes a reality

By Bernie Wijesekera

Royal College, with a great tradition producing some of the outstanding sportsmen, who have done proud to the country and for their alma mater will reach greater heights, with the completion of "Touchdown 2000", said Hemaka Amerasuriya, Chairman of the Royal College Sports Complex Committee.

He was addressing the media and outlining the project to the large gathering of Old Royalists and wellwishers, who assembled at the Hotel Lanka Oberoi. The seeds were sown to raise Rs. 50 million to make it a reality, something more than the new millennium to celebrate in the year 2000, with its completion.

With Amerasuriya, in the driving seat and with an unstinted team effort with everyone rallying around, nothing is impossible and is bound to be a reality for the future generations to enjoy its fruits.

Royal has produced great sportsmen, who have maintained a tradition and a high standard of sportsmanship on and off the field, sans caste, race or colour. To them it was the game that matters in the end.

The "Battle of the Blues", and the Bradby Shield - two of the most looked forward to events in the Royal sports calendar, todate, are two good examples.

The new complex will further provide facilities to young Royalist sportsmen with an infrastructure to further explore their talents to the fullest to improve their skills and achieve their objectives for a better future, he added.

This modern complex will transform the present rugby grounds at the Race Course, with facilities for rugby, football, basketball, table tennis, badminton, boxing, volleyball, squash and baseball.

Schools like S. Thomas'. Trinity, Ananda etc., have similar projects.

Kithsiri Almeida, project architect, outlined the complex on a screen, to the audience.

The Principal of Royal College, Mr. H.L.B. Gomes said he was privileged to be associated with the project to provide the school with a sports complex.

Considering the pupils on roll which far exceed 6,000 this is a long felt need he said.

With a committee headed by Hemaka Amerasuriya, nothing is impossible. This in turn will benefit all Royalists for generations to come he said.

He called upon all Roylists, young or old and wellwishers to extend their fullest support for its completion in time to usher the 21st century.

Former Cricket Board Secretary, Tryphon Mirando, was the convenor of the confab.

The Royal College Sports Complex Committee: Hemaka Amerasuriya (Chairman), Capt. Ajith Peiris (Secretary), Thanula Wijewardena (Treasurer), U.N. Gunasekera, Tissa, Gunaratne, Dr. C. Thurairaja, Chandresa Abhayaratne, J.K. Fernando, R.J. de. Silva, Dr. Dilanjan de Soyza, Metha Abeygunawardena, Andy Anderson, Comdr. Chithralala Perera, Akmal Sathuk, Sumith Guruge, Rohan Karunanayake, Sugi Rajaratnam (Consultant Engineer) and Kithsiri Almeida Project Architect).


T. Perera 6 for 4 with a hat-trick

A good bowling performance by T. Perera, who captured 6 wickets for 4 runs inclusive of a hat-trick helped Colombo A to beat Region 4 (Dambulla) by 100 runs in their Under-15 Inter-Regional limited-overs final round match played at the De Mazenod College grounds, Kandana.

Colombo A 313 all out in 48 overs (S. Nishantha 42, E. Abeysinghe 33, N. Wickremasinghe 32, T.G. Konara 2 for 23).

Region 4 - Dambulla 113 all out in 34.5 overs (T.G. Konara 40, M. Gunaratne 16, D. Gunatilleka 16, T. Perera 6 for 4, J. Sabreen 2 for 36).

In two other games in the same tournament, Colombo North Outer beat Region 3 (Galle) by 90 runs at Kandana and Colombo B beat Region 3 (Galle) by 29 runs at the NCC grounds, Maitland Place.

At Kandana - Colombo North Outer 275 for 6 in 50 overs (I. Muthalip 91, R. Fonseka 38, T. Fernando 36, S. Chintana 31, M. Gunawardena 2 for 31, T.G. Konara 2 for 58).

Region 3 Galle 185 all out in 41.3 overs (T.G. Konara 32, T.H.V. Shanuka 29, D. Gunatilleka 28, G. Chaturanga 25, D. Prasad 3 for 23). At Maitland Place - Colombo B 153 for 7 (Jehan Jayasooriya 73, B. Dananjaya 29, Niroshan 2 for 19).

Region 3 - Galle 124 all out in 44.5 overs (A. Omesh 40 not out, R.C. Nanayakkara 21, D. Williams 2 for 26, Jehan Jayasooriya 2 for 13, N. Wijeratne 3 for 23).

(AF)

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