- Follows historic Gold at Asian Games
- Javelin sensation eyes further success in 2027–’28
- Eclipses Ethirveerasingam’s 1958 Tokyo record
Asian Games men’s javelin throw Gold medal-winning athlete Rumesh Tharanga has reportedly been presented with a brand new luxury Honda Vezel car worth over Rs. 20 million by the Sri Lanka Automobile Association in Japan (SLAAJ), along with contributions from Sri Lankans domiciled in Japan.
The handsome prize was handed over to Tharanga following his historic throw covering a distance of 88.55 m, which saw him clinch Gold in the men’s javelin throw event at the ongoing Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games in Japan last week.
The handing over of the luxury vehicle to the world’s top-ranked men’s javelin thrower had taken place in Nagoya on Tuesday (29 September) in the presence of officials from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Japan.
Tharanga’s heroics at the Aichi-Nagoya Games also saw him eclipsing a few other records for his country in the history of the Asian Games.
His Gold medal success in Japan was the first time ever that a Sri Lankan athlete was able to reach the topmost spot on the podium in the men’s javelin event since the inception of the Asian Games in 1951.
He also became the first Sri Lankan to win Gold in any field event in 68 years, ever since the late Dr. Nagalingam Ethirveerasingam won Gold in the high jump event at the Asian Games in Tokyo in 1958.
Dr. Ethirveerasingam, a pioneering athlete, academic, and humanitarian activist who passed away aged 89 in California in 2024, holds a monumental place in the nation’s sports history for winning Ceylon’s first-ever Gold medal at a major international multi-sport event.
The momentous triumph for Tharanga in Japan added another major international title to his dream 2026 season, following a similar showing at this year’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow last July.
Tharanga currently holds a personal best and Sri Lankan record of 92.62 m, achieved at the Rome Diamond League in June.
Commenting in the wake of his victory at the Asian Games, the former St. Peter’s College star insisted that the weather conditions on the day had scuppered his ambition to break the existing record in the men’s javelin throw event.
However, he expressed satisfaction at having excelled at three major international meets – the Commonwealth Games, World Athletics Ultimate Championship, and Asian Games – on the trot.
Tharanga said that his next focus would be the World Athletics Championships in Beijing in 2027, which he said would lead to his eventual goal of winning the elusive holy grail in sports for his country: Gold at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
He entered the Asian Games as one of Sri Lanka’s leading medal prospects on the back of a series of record-breaking performances this year.
His Asian Games success came in the aftermath of Turkish Airlines having damaged five of his javelins, which he had used when contesting the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Hungary, on flight TK370 as he returned to Colombo via Istanbul.
Following the destruction caused to Tharanga’s javelins, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports committed itself to purchase a new set of javelins for the ace athlete, who has now become his nation’s biggest hope for a maiden Olympic Gold at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
(JK)