The level to which Sri Lanka’s ambassadors involved in the field of sports have brought the country to disrepute in the eyes of the world could not be explained any worse than former Olympian sprinter Ranga Wimalawansa remanded over a fraud of Rs.700.000 on Friday to add to a list criminal acts.
Wimalawansa’s latest case follows last week’s Parliament stripping down of high ranking officials running the island’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) or carrying on with impunity and indulging in financial rip-offs, money laundering and human smuggling.
Wimalawansa on a previous occasion was sentenced to two years imprisonment for defrauding Rs.1.6 million by duping employment seekers for jobs overseas.
His athletic talents were discovered by St. Peter’s College that took him into their care from his original village school in Kalutara.
Afforded all the privileges, family care and protection by his adopted school, Wimalawansa was cut and polished into a gem and showcased as a finished product ready to represent his country which he did as a teenager to win the Bronze medal in the 400m relay race at the Asian Athletics Championship in Japan in 1998.
The inspiration he may not have received anywhere else made him persevere his dreams to the core point of international stardom as he bagged his biggest trophy, a Gold medal in the 400m relay at the prestigious Asian Games in Jakartha, Indonesia in 2000.
Unlike today, he earned his place in the Sri Lankan Olympic contingent the hardest way possible for the Sydney Games that same year sporting the national emblem and blazer.
Wimalawansa hung up his shoes in 2007 and worked as a coach.
But unable to resist the temptation of big money that did not come his way as a sportsman at the time, Wimalawansa moved into business and the rest is now history, a village kid from Piyagala in Kalutara south who found a guardian angel and decades later fell into demonic deeds unable to see himself the way his followers adored him.
