Sri Lankan shuttlers accounted for a tally of 61 medals at the highly acclaimed Ceylon Masters Badminton Championship which was held in Colombo through July 25th to 28th in Colombo. Out of the entire tally, Sri Lankan shuttlers claimed 21 gold, 16 silver and 24 bronze medals, out of 60 different age categories ranging from Over-36 to Over-120.
The Lankan shuttlers gained top honours in the Men’s Singles 35, Women’s Doubles 35,Women’s Singles 40, Mixed Doubles 40, Men’s Singles 45, Men’s Doubles 45, Women’s Doubles 45 FR,Women’s Singles 50, Men’s Doubles 50,Men’s Singles 55,Women’s Doubles 55, Women’ Singles 65, Women’s Singles 65 FR, Men’s Doubles 65,Mixed Doubles 110, Women’s Doubles 100, Women’s Doubles 110 and Mixed Doubles 130 events.
Among the standout performers for Sri Lanka were Rohan de Silva, Renu Chandrika Perera, Roshan Padmakumara, Manjula Sampath Fernando, Vipuli Seneviratne, Upendra Perera, Clarence Homer, Duminda Cooray, Mohan Wijesinghe, Priyanke Abeyratne, Sriyani Deepika, Mallika Waduge, Nadeesha Gayathri, Hasitha Chanaka, Wijayalakshmi Punchihewa, Rohan Fernando, Lalith Amarasena, Senaka Attanayake and Krishantha Gamage, who all accounted for gold medals.
Dishing out spectacular display of skill and sportsmanship, this year the tournament received an overwhelming response, with a record 536 entries from 11countries including Australia, Canada, China, India, Indonesia, UAE, Norway, Malaysia, the USA and hosts Sri Lanka.
To accommodate the increased number of matches, the organizers secured additionalvenues across Sri Lanka’s capital of Colombo, notably at the Mercantile Badminton Courts andthe Otters Courts over the four days of the tournament.A team of highly qualified officials, led byInternational Referee Lakpriya Edirisinghe, conducted the umpiring and line judgments with AjithWijayasinghe, a former international referee, serving as the Tournament Director.
The organising committee, spearheaded by Mr. Rohan de Silva, the President of Ceylon MastersBadminton, was supported by a dedicated executive committee comprising SumuduKumarasinghe, Jaliya Jayasekara, Tharanga Perera, Rohan Fernando, Sahan Pradeep, SugathThalwatha, Chandrika de Silva, Lakshmi Punchihewa, Lalith Yatiwella, Mangala Gamage,Priyanka Abeyratne, Senaka Attanayake, Thushari Brahakmanage, Wanda Ingram, SachithraVidanagama, and Nishantha Jayamane.
In addition to the intense competition, international players were given the opportunity tovisit some of Sri Lanka’s most interesting tourist destinations, facilitated by the designated travelagent. Transport arrangements were meticulously planned, including transfers from theairport to the official hotel in Colombo, as well as shuttle services to the tournament venues.All winners received prize money and medals, adding to the prestige of the event.