Keep training uninterrupted, the biggest challenge for athletes in centenary year
How to keep training uninterrupted amidst the Covid-19 pandemic to succeed at international events is the biggest problem the track and field athletes need to find answers to in the sport’s centenary year in 2022 as Sri Lanka Athletics announced a busy 2022 Competition calendar inclusive of three major international competitions yesterday.
Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships are the major international competitions that Sri Lanka Athletics has traditionally given priority to. The sport’s governing body which celebrates its centenary year in 2022 is ambitions about sending teams to all these international events.
However, track and field governing body is still struggling to complete the 2021 edition of the National Championship due to the Covid 19 pandemic. The Sri Lanka Athletics decided to conduct the 2021 Nationals in stages due to the pandemic. It held its first stage in April but had to post
pone the second stage on more than one occasion due to the pandemic.
When the governing body announced the Calendar for the year 2022 it also announced the dates for the remaining stage of the National Championship 2021. That will be held on October 30 and 31.
The Covid 19 pandemic dealt a severe blow to the aspirations of track and field athletes as lockdowns hampered their training and also prevented them from taking part in supportive minor international events in the region in both 2020 and 2021. While top athletes struggled to improve their world rankings due to the unavailability of quality international competitions, the bio secure environments for training were a luxury only the cricketers could enjoy.
Sri Lanka has several athletes who could excel at some of the above said international events and the vital Junior International events which will happen in 2022. The likes of Nilani Ratnayake who missed Olympic qualifying standards due to lack of competitions should be supported to achieve success at Asian level.
The athletes who missed Olympic Qualifying standards due to lack of international competitions will be eager to take part in these events in 2022 and the Asian Youth Championships, Asian Junior Championships and World Junior Championships are vital to keep juniors interested in track and field sports. But with Covid-19 pandemic still making it difficult for athletes to train safely in the country it will be incumbent upon sports authorities to make necessary arrangements for at least the athletes in the elite pools to train in bio secure environments.
While a coach of a junior athletics team could not travel with his athlete after being found positive to Covid-19 ahead of the World Junior Championships in July another coach of a Para athlete had to skip training ahead of the Tokyo Paralympics due to Covid 19. Meanwhile a number of sportsmen and women contacted Covid 19 while using the Sports Ministry’s hostels at Torrington during the last few months.
Such disappointments can be avoided if necessary arrangements are be made for selected athletics teams to train in bio secure bubbles.
(TheIsland- Reemus Fernando)
