Weightlifting is not just a sport but a test of the human body’s capacity to handle immense loads with skill, precision and endurance. Our country has had strong, robust individuals(යෝධයෝ) since the time of the lineage of kings, who have made their mark on our history. Weightlifting was a sport limited to a few districts in Sri Lanka in the recent past; it's currently become a standard in several districts and faculties as well. The Weightlifting bar has been raised in many districts with several Sri Lankan records and marks being set.
Background
With its introduction to the Olympic games in 1896, weightlifting sets its origins far back over 2000 years to the ancient Chinese and Greek civilizations, with evidence of use by Chinese military recruits in physical tests as early as 300 BC. Weightlifting is a sport that tests both strength and dexterity. Athletes compete in numerous events and aim to raise more weight than their opponents. Weightlifting improves comprehensive ranges of motion in nearly every major joint in the body while improving balance, coordination, and kinesthetic sensibility.
Weightlifting events require lifters to complete two lifts: the snatch, the clean and the jerk. The largest amount of weight lifted in each lift and in total, which includes the sum of both lifts, is commonly used to determine the winner. In weightlifting, two lifts with both hands must be performed in sequence, with a maximum of three turns.
Sri Lanka Prospects
Weightlifters have brought glory to Sri Lanka at the international level with Chinthana Vithanage being the first contestant to win a medal in the history of the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006. Once again, Sri Lanka sends their best hope of success, trained to exceed their potential and with a determination to bring glory to our country. The Men’s team consists of our six talented weightlifters: Chaturanga Lakmal, Indika Dissanayake, and Chinthana Vidanage being former Commonwealth medallists and Dilanka Isuru Kumara, Thilanka Palangasinghe, and Ushan Charuka. This will be Vithanage’s fifth consecutive Commonwealth Games.
“The selections have been made considering performances of lifters between January 1, 2021, and February 28, 2022. Sri Lankan lifters managed to earn their qualification with good outings at the Commonwealth weightlifting championship which was held in December last year in Uzbekistan and the Asian qualification event which was held last month in Singapore.”
Sri Lankan Men’s weightlifters won several medals at the recent Singapore International Weightlifting Championships 2022. With past achievements and guidance from an experienced panel of coaches and training, the team aims to achieve glory and bring prestigious medals back to the nation.
PLAYER PROFILES
Dilanka Isuru Kumara
Dilanka Isuru Kumara, a weight lifter attached to the Sri Lanka Army as a Lance Corporal of the Panagoda Camp, is an old boy of Gettumana Maha Vidyalaya, Kurunegala and John Kothalawala National School. After leaving school, he joined the Sri Lanka Army in 2016 and started weightlifting under the coaching of Rukshan Gunathillake. At the start, he participated without much success, but he proved his class at the National Weightlifting Championship when he won his weight class of 55 kg continuously from the year 2016 to 2019. He toured Malaysia for the Youth Commonwealth Games and won in the 55 kg weight class in 2016. In 2019, at the Asian Weightlifting Championship held in China, he was placed third. In the same year, he won his weight class of 55 kg at the South Asian Weight Lifting Contest held in Nepal.
Dilanka Isuru Kumara has bagged two medals at the Asian Weightlifting Championships 2021 held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and has qualified to compete for Sri Lanka at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England. At present Isuru Kumara is training for the Commonwealth Championship in England. He is very talented and the wishes of the nation are with him throughout.
Thilanka Palangasinghe
Thilanka Palangasinghe, born in 1993, is a Sri Lankan male weight lifter, who has represented Sri Lanka at international competitions. He participated at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in the 56 kg event and the 2018 Commonwealth Games competing in the 62kg event. Thilanka Palangasinghe will has also represented Sri Lanka at the Commonwealth Championships in weightlifting coming away with a brace of silver medals as well as bronze medals including a bronze at the most recent edition in Tashkent. He will be looking forward to put his best efforts in aid of the national team's quest for another medal at Birmingham.
Chaturanga Lakmal
Chathuranga Lakmal (born 7 October 1988) claimed the nation's first Commonwealth Games medal during the 2018 Commonwealth Games after clinching a bronze medal in the men's 56kg weightlifting event on the opening day of the competition. From his roots in Gampaha, Chaturanga Lakmal is a Sri Lankan male weightlifter who has competed for Sri Lanka in the 2016 South Asian Games and claimed a silver medal in the men's 56 kg event. He was named as one of the members of the Sri Lankan contingent at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. He qualified to compete at the 2019 World Weightlifting Championships in the men's 61kg category and is now qualified to compete for Sri Lanka at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham with a gold medal at the Singapore International Weightlifting Championships 2022. Chathuranga Lakmal is determined to achieve the best at Birmingham.
Indika Dissanayake
Indika C. D. Dissanayake Mudiyanselage was born on 6 August 1989 in Hataraliyadda, Central Province of Sri Lanka. He competed in the 69 kg division at the Asian Games (in 2010 and 2018), South Asian Games(in 2016) and the Commonwealth Games (in 2010, 2014 and 2018). He won a silver medal at the 2016 South Asian Games. With an education from Menikdiwela Central College and Kingswood College, Kandy, he joined the Sri Lanka Navy in 2009. His subsequent silver medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games was the first silver medal for Sri Lanka at those Games and the third medal received by Sri Lanka in the weightlifting category after a couple of bronze medals secured by Chaturanga Lakmal.
In June 2018, Indika Dissanayake reached his highest career world ranking of 11 for the 69 kg category according to the world rankings revealed by the International Weightlifting Federation. It was also the highest career rating achieved by a Sri Lankan weightlifter. Winning a gold medal in the 73 kg weight class at Singapore International Weightlifting Championships 2022, Dissanayake has qualified to compete for Sri Lanka at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England. His relentless effort and achievements are the epitome of one of the finest weight lifters in Sri Lanka.
Chinthana Vidanage
Chinthana Geetal Vidanage, born in Polonnaruwa in 1981, was educated at Navodya MV and Royal College, Polonnaruwa and is a weightlifter from Sri Lanka. He came into the spotlight by establishing a new record at the 2001 National Weightlifting Championships. He won a gold medal in the men's 62 kg category weightlifting, the first weightlifting gold medal for Sri Lanka in the 2006 Commonwealth Games Australia. He added a Silver Medal to his tally at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Vidanage also dominated the South Asian Games and won a Gold Medal in 2004 (Pakistan), 2006 (Colombo) and 2010 (Bangladesh). With an opportunity of participating in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, he finished in 16th place in the World Rankings.
He won the Gold Medal at the National Sports Festival from 2002 to 2017 and the Gold Medal at the National Weightlifting Championships from 2001 to 2017 while setting new Sri Lanka records. Though for a brief still in his sports career in 2011 due to anti-doping rules, Vidanage is back strong. Vidanage is the only sportsman in Sri Lankan history to win two medals at the Commonwealth Games. He got selected as the Most Outstanding Sportsman of 2010. Vidanage became an automatic choice to represent the country at international events and went on to bring more fame and glory to Sri Lanka. Vidanage has won the Sri Lankan Best Lifter Award from 2002 to 2010, 2015 and 2017 and has eight Sri Lankan records in three weight categories (69kg, 77kg and 85kg). Sri Lanka can be assured of a medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.
Ushan Charuka
Born 9th August 1993 in Matara, Ushan Charuka is from the Sri Lanka Air Force and has established a national record in the Clean and Jerk by lifting 180 kg, previously established by Chathuranga (174 kg) at the National Sports Festival weightlifting contest. Ushan Charuka competed in the men’s over 105 kg category, and broke the national record on 25 September 2017 at the 5th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, with a total of 319 kg to grab the new Sri Lankan record overall (Snatch, Clean and Jerk). It was recorded as the highest ever mark in the Clean and Jerk. Sri Lanka's Ushan Charuka was placed eighth in the Weightlifting Men's 105kg category at the Commonwealth Games 2018. Ushan Charuka won gold in the over 109 kg weightlifting event at the recent Singapore International Weightlifting Championships 2022, paving the way to earn a Commonwealth Games qualification in Birmingham.
With such raw talent and experience, the Men’s weight lifting is inevitable to win many medals at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England and bring fame, prestige and glory to Sri Lanka.
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