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08
NADEEKA LAKMALI |
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She is a Lance Corporal in
the Sri Lanka Army and deadly with the javelin.
Nadeeka Lakmali is another of the island’s
Olympians, who will be competing on the field in
her pet event: the javelin throw.
It is an honour for Lakmali, who is the first
Sri Lankan woman to be shortlisted for taking
part in the field events for the Olympics.
Lakmali is a product of Kahaduwa Maha Vidyalaya,
Elpitiya, who excelled in sports. Her interest
for the javelin throw was evident from an early
age, and her talents were sharpened by the
school coach Manjula Mohotti: ultimately,
Lakmali won the Under-15 Javelin Championship at
the Junior National Meet held in Galle in 1995.
Competing at the National Sports Festival in
1999, Lakmali was spotted by Brigadier Palitha
Fernando, who extended the youngster an
invitation to join the Army. Upon finishing her
schooling, Lakmali did precisely that, becoming
part of the Sri Lanka Army in 2000. It served as
a turning point in the young woman’s career.
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At the Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Athletic Meet
held at the Sugathadasa Stadium in 2007, Lakmali
broke the national javelin throw record of 56.20
m held by Anne Maheshi de Silva of the Sri Lanka
Navy by achieving an impressive distance of
58.48 m. Lakmali also competed at a number of
international games, including the SAARC Games
in Pakistan in 2005 and the
Asian Games in Korea. At the 2007 Asian
Championship in Jordan, Lakmali bagged a bronze
medal before earning three gold medals in 2008
at the SAARC Games in Cochin, India and the Open
Championship in Thailand and Taipei.
Currently training under coaches B.M.G. Bandara,
A.J. Rajaguru and Major General Palitha
Fernando, Lakmali has been working extremely
hard in the run up to the Olympic Games. |
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