N.U.ABDUL RAZZAK UDAYAR
SHARJAH- Opportunity never knocks twice at any man’s door or for the matter to Kasun Kausal Gunawardene, the Sri Lankan bronze medalist of 2021 MuayThai International World Boxing Championship held in Thailand the other day. He was qualified for the semi final that was against Malaysia, but was sadly not taken to the venue in time to showcase his prowess to clinch the gold. The tour was a nightmare for the Lankan boxers as they faced inconvenience and hardship in their stay according to kausal and some of his colleagues. As soon as the squad landed at Katunayake, he and some of his fellow members of the squad made a public complain against the two officials, the coach and the manager saying that they were not cooperative and failed to take steps to send Kasun Kaushal to the venue in time. His unwanted lateness for showing up at the stadium denied him of the contest in the rare semifinal. To be fair, the coach who was interviewed by the media denied the allegation but failed to convince them as he hurriedly left the scene not answering all the questions posed by the media. The two leading electronic media, Ada Derana and Sirasa should be given a big pat for rightly and immediately exposing the injustice and the plight of our boxes who went to Thailand to keep the Sri Lankan flag fly high. Frankly, Ada Derana has bent over backwards to find a sponsor for the talented Kasun Kasual as on 23rd November, it telecast a piece of special news on his financial difficulty to make his journey a reality. Its genuine efforts went well and quickly helped kausal get the sponsorship thus paving the way for Kaushal to proudly produce at least a bronze medal for our mother land.
The Lankan hero and two other members of the team were so emotional at the airport pouring out what happened throughout their stay in Thailand. They openly told they had death threats by the officials if they fail to win any medals. One Lankan boxer, A.I. Mohammed Cader who was injured in the tournament was in tears to reveal that he was threatened to perform well or face the music. Kausala also made the mention of some other unpleasant things that were given as warning to the squad. The other boxer Isuru Dilhara Ratnayaka clearly pointed out that they were asked to go to the venue at 10.45 to be there at 11 a.m. When they reached the contest was over. Meanwhile at the interview, the officials pointed out that it was the fault of the Lankan boxers to miss the first bus though they were repeatedly asked to take it.
The blame game will not bring any credit to Sri Lanka or for that matter to any members of this touring squad. What is done is done! Let us take this as a big lesson not to repeat such stupid mistakes in the future. I am quite sure that the Minister of Sports Mr. Namal Rajapaka who has lofty and pure ideals to raise the standard of sports in Sri Lanka will personally take a keen interest in this grave issue and leave no stone unturned to get an immediate investigation done to punish the wrong doers. Isn’t this really an eye opener for the Sports Ministry to see that the future Sri Lankan touring squads get not only professionally qualified officials but also experts who have concerns and sympathy for our players whose prime duty is focusing on training and sharpening the skills related to their respective games?
