In a thrilling day at the All-Island Schools Games Athletics Championship, Thushen Silva, an Asian Youth Championship medallist from Maris Stella College in Negombo, achieved something amazing. On Wednesday at the Sugathadasa Stadium, he broke not one, but three records in the pole vault.
Thushen leaped over the bar at a staggering height of 4.90 meters, shattering the meet record, the national youth record, and the national junior record. This remarkable achievement solidified his position as one of the top pole vaulters in Asia in his age category.
Before this, A. Puvitharan’s 2019 national junior record of 4.82 meters held firm, but Thushen Silva wasn’t content with just one record. He exceeded expectations and jumped to 4.90 meters, setting a new personal best and earning the title of the sixth-best performer in Asia for his age group this year, according to World Athletics statistics.
Thushen’s incredible accomplishment makes him the third athlete to break a national junior record at this event. Jayavi Ranhinda Alwis of Royal College, Panadura, and Tharushi Karunaratne, an Asian Games medallist, did so in shot put and the 400 meters on the first two days.
The excitement continued as Nethmika Madushani Herath, the national junior record holder, broke the Under 20 girls’ long jump meet record by jumping 6.22 meters. Her performance was even better than her previous national junior record (2.09 meters), but due to the absence of a wind gauge, it might not count as the new national junior mark.
The day kicked off with Dilni Nethsala Rajapaksha from Lyceum International School, Wattala, securing her second title of the meet. After setting a new meet record in the Under 14 girls’ long jump on Tuesday, she cleared a height of 1.55 meters, erasing the high jump meet record set in 2018.
Lyceum sprinter Dhananjana Fernando, who narrowly missed the Under 16 girls’ 100 meters title on Tuesday, redeemed herself with a 25.44 seconds effort, earning the 200 meters gold with a new record mark.
Notably, Mayon Chirath, an emerging thrower from Prince of Wales College in Moratuwa, claimed victory in the Under 14 boys’ shot put with ease. He set a new meet record by throwing the shot put a distance of 15.13 meters, surpassing the previous record by ten centimeters. Mayon Chirath had previously set new junior age category records in various events this year and reached the All-Island Schools Games after winning the Western Province competition with a new meet record mark of 15.48 meters.
St. Mary’s College athletes from Chilaw left their mark by achieving a record-breaking feat of 41.62 seconds in the Under 20 boys’ 4×100 meters relay. Additionally, Dinesh Dilshan Fernando, who previously established a meet record at the Sir John Tarbat Senior Championships with a javelin throw of 64.92 meters last month, cleared a distance of 59.03 meters to claim gold in the Under 20 boys’ javelin throw.
