A.M. Sumanaweera (Former cycling national champion)
I have been competing at top level competitions in Sri Lanka since
1965. As newcomers we were highly anticipating the then famous Tour de
Lanka, which was the premier cycling rally those days. It was a great
achievement to compete and complete this race for us. And back at home
in Ratnapura, we were treated as heroes upon returning from the Tour de
Lanka rally. By competing at this race I became famous, this was before I
went on to win the event for many years. People knew us, people loved
cycling and the sport had great recognition those days. But today the
situation is pathetic. Even if a cyclist wins a big event nobody really
cares.
At present we see a total domination of armed forces in cycling, be
it at competitions or the administration. The armed forces teams have
big teams and in a way this has forced other clubs, some leading, in
dire states. I have personally witnessed that cyclists from armed forces
block the ways of other cyclists at races so their members could win
it. This is not sportsmanship. Appalling standard of administration is
responsible for this kind of situation in a way. These teams claim that
they are helping cyclists and cycling by recruiting them in big numbers.
But there’s a bad side of it which they don’t see.
If these teams go on hunting for quantity, unknowingly they are
responsible in bringing down the quality of the cycling. Other clubs
from the rest of Sri Lanka will not have the capability of producing
good cyclists because they are grabbed by these teams, namely the Army,
Navy and Air Force. If the situation is such how will the riders from
villages reach the top? They will only be hunted by others and from
there they will become technically poor riders.
As a schoolboy I used to cycle from my home to school and back. We had the passion for cycling those days. And with what is taking place, we can only dream of seeing cyclists with enthusiasm and commitment. Those who are responsible have turned cycling a business today. It is evident with the number of junior riders available in the country now. I can proudly boast that I was a schoolboy when I competed in the Tour de Lanka race. Nowadays schoolboys competing at top level is a rare occurrence. You can easily judge the development of cycling in Sri Lanka. It has only reached the rags.
I also don’t see anything positive coming out from the cycling federation officials, which is apparently an interim body for many years. And also those who in the interim committee do not seem to have any sort of experience in cycling. This is a real setback in terms of cycling. Why I say that is, one needs to be oriented with cycling and its technical aspects, so it will make life easy for the administrators. But this disadvantage has hit cycling in a big way. It is fine to have total outsiders as the president and the secretary of cycling federation but former cyclists should fill the remaining slots in the governing body. Today I don’t see cycling being benefited from its former stalwarts. They are totally sidelined. Instead outsiders with personal agendas have dominated the cycling federation.
With my experience of over 40 years in cycling I think all parties need to put aside differences and work towards a single goal, which should be the development of the sport. It’s very simple to popularise cycling but you need the expertise of former cyclists to do that. As the situation has gone to an extreme where it needs state interference, I think it’s high time that the government steps forward and put things back in order.
We also don’t see races being conducted very often unlike yesteryears. Cycling needs more competitions, at least one for each month. After sorting out four of the top races, the administrators should find proper and longstanding sponsors to conduct event in the remaining eight months. This way we could rank the cyclists and categorise them. This programme should be continued for some time until, the cycling federation comes to a term where it can identify its cyclists and send them to international races, based on their rankings. Also there should be a permanent remedy to the club mafia, where we nowadays see the armed forces field over 40 cyclists in order to win a race, while thwarting competitors from other clubs. My view is that each team should be given the opportunity to field only eight riders per race. It will enhance the race and its standards with the help of the experts. And it will help produce skilled and technically perfect competitors.
As a schoolboy I used to cycle from my home to school and back. We had the passion for cycling those days. And with what is taking place, we can only dream of seeing cyclists with enthusiasm and commitment. Those who are responsible have turned cycling a business today. It is evident with the number of junior riders available in the country now. I can proudly boast that I was a schoolboy when I competed in the Tour de Lanka race. Nowadays schoolboys competing at top level is a rare occurrence. You can easily judge the development of cycling in Sri Lanka. It has only reached the rags.
I also don’t see anything positive coming out from the cycling federation officials, which is apparently an interim body for many years. And also those who in the interim committee do not seem to have any sort of experience in cycling. This is a real setback in terms of cycling. Why I say that is, one needs to be oriented with cycling and its technical aspects, so it will make life easy for the administrators. But this disadvantage has hit cycling in a big way. It is fine to have total outsiders as the president and the secretary of cycling federation but former cyclists should fill the remaining slots in the governing body. Today I don’t see cycling being benefited from its former stalwarts. They are totally sidelined. Instead outsiders with personal agendas have dominated the cycling federation.
With my experience of over 40 years in cycling I think all parties need to put aside differences and work towards a single goal, which should be the development of the sport. It’s very simple to popularise cycling but you need the expertise of former cyclists to do that. As the situation has gone to an extreme where it needs state interference, I think it’s high time that the government steps forward and put things back in order.
We also don’t see races being conducted very often unlike yesteryears. Cycling needs more competitions, at least one for each month. After sorting out four of the top races, the administrators should find proper and longstanding sponsors to conduct event in the remaining eight months. This way we could rank the cyclists and categorise them. This programme should be continued for some time until, the cycling federation comes to a term where it can identify its cyclists and send them to international races, based on their rankings. Also there should be a permanent remedy to the club mafia, where we nowadays see the armed forces field over 40 cyclists in order to win a race, while thwarting competitors from other clubs. My view is that each team should be given the opportunity to field only eight riders per race. It will enhance the race and its standards with the help of the experts. And it will help produce skilled and technically perfect competitors.
Tour de Lanka on again:
When Boniface pedalled to history
by Chris Dhambarage
The dream of every cyclist is to win the prestigious Tour de Lanka
cycling classic. And to perform that feat on three occasions is even more
significant.
There have been only three cyclists who have performed this unique feat
in the history of the Tour de Lanka cycle race which was first held in
1965.
This time the race which has been revived after nearly a decade will be
staged in five different stages from December 7 to 12 covering a distance
of more than nine hundred kilo metres.
The Tour de Lanka is organised and conducted by the Associated
Newspapers of Ceylon Limited (ANCL) and the Interim Committee for Cycling
in Sri Lanka in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Police.
While Maurice Coomarawel performed a hattrick of victories from 1965 to
1967, two other top riders Boniface Perera of Wattala and A. M.
Sumanaweera from Ratnapura also produced a similar performance to create a
piece of history in the local cycling scene.
Even then the performances of Boniface Perera had great significance
because he performed this feat in the racing class event and especially
when the competition was at its peak. Boniface Perera made his presence
felt and joined a select band of cyclists by winning the Tour de Lanka
race in 1980, 1981 and 1982.
Incidentally the 1982 race was probably one of the most exciting events
in the history with Boniface Perera making a desperate attempt to retain
the title for the third successive year with stiff opposition coming from
G. H. Henderson.
The two riders carried on the fight until the last one hundred metres
of the race during the fourth and final stage before a collision left
Henderson's cycle with just one wheel giving Boniface Perera a clear
victory at the end.
The dejected Henderson then carried his cycle and the wheel to finish
the race walking but not before A. M. Sumanaweera had powered his way to
clinch the second place. A similar collision occurred during the third
stage too between the same riders at Kurunegala and the unfortunate victim
on that occasion was Boniface Perera.
A. M. Sumanaweera from Ratnapura also had the honour of winning the
Tour de Lanka race on three occasions from 1984 to 1986.