Sri Lankan sprinter Aruna Darshana who finished in fifth place in the second semifinal of the Men’s 400 m event at the Paris Olympics on Tuesday (6), was subsequently disqualified by International Olympic Committee (IOC) officials for a lane infringement.
The incident not only dashed the sprinter’s dreams of progressing further in his favourite event at the quadrennial event, but those of sports fans in this country who prayed for the sprinter to advance to the finals.
Darshana, who became the first Sri Lankan 400 m runner to reach the Olympic semis had finished the race with a time of 44.75 seconds, setting a new personal best. However, he was unfortunately disqualified over the aforementioned incident.
He took part in the second semifinal of the event, which commenced at 11:12 p.m. (IST) on Tuesday (6).
Written protest
The President of Sri Lanka Athletics (SLA) Retired General Palitha Fernando, speaking to The Daily Morning Sports from France, said that they had lodged a written protest over Darshana’s disqualification within 30-minutes of the incident to IOC officials, but lamented that it was to no avail.
“Apparently they (IOC) deemed that Aruna (Darshana) had infringed twice during the course of his sprint”, he explained.
“According to them, two infringements as per the rules, brings about automatic disqualification and that was the end result.”
But, Fernando hailed the sprinter’s impact in the 400 m for his country at the Games and insisted that nobody should downplay his ‘marvellous’ efforts in Paris due to his disqualification.
Athletes from Argentina, South Africa, Italy, Zambia, United States, Botswana, and Grenada had raced in the semifinal two alongside Aruna Darshana.
The first two athletes in each semifinal heat from Grenada and Zambia respectively and next two fastest athletes in overall semifinals had advanced to the final of the event, according to the IOC.
Sprinter from Seruwila
The 25-year-old sprinter hailing from Seruwila in the Trincomalee District, qualified for the semifinals on Sunday (4), after finishing third in the Heat race.
Darshana finished third in the Men’s 400 m Heat five with a timing of 44.99 seconds, which is his personal best.
The Sri Lankan sprinter recently showcased his phenomenal speed and skill on the track achieving an impressive first-place finish in the Men’s 400 m event at the second Belt and Road Invitational Athletics Championship held in China.
He was also the second Sri Lankan elite athlete to break the 45-second barrier in the Men’s 400 m after the legendary former sprinter Sugath Thilakaratne.
Darshana, the former schoolboy prodigy from Weera Keppetipola National School in Akuramboda won the men’s 400 m event during the 2018 National Athletics Championships by clocking a time of 46.16 seconds.
Before heading to Paris, Darshana had competed in seven international meets where he had managed to run under 45 seconds in each of those events.