Youth Affairs and Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa appointed new members to the National Sports Council (NSC) on Thursday (20). The new Sports Council will have duration of two years (2020-2022). The Council will advice the Sports Minister on policy matters pertaining to sports in the country. Minister Rajapaksa had earlier announced that the National Sports Council he was going to appoint would overlook the overall plan of his ministry to develop sports in both rural and national level. The new minister has already pledged he would change the 1973 National Sports Act so that it could suit the present-day realities, while also pointing out that sports as a whole needs to contribute the overall development of the nation contributing substantially to its economy. Sri Lanka cricket legend Mahela Jayawardene will head the NSC. The newly appointed 15-member National Sports Council: Mahela Jayawardene – Chairman Thiyumi Abeysinghe – Appointed Secretary Committee Members: Julian Bolling Kumar Sangakkara Dilantha Malagamuwa Kasturi Chellaraja Wilson Supun Weerasinghe Rohan Fernando Ruwan Keragala Sanjeewa Wickramanayake Major General Rajitha Ampemohotti Lieutenant General Shavendra Silva Rowena Samarasinghe Yaswanth Muttetuwegama, and A.J.S.S. Edirisooriya