First-ever women only karting race at SLKC in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Monday, 4 November 2019 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

From left: Vishadini Fernando, Rashika Shereen and Gayani Wasana in the Masters category

From left: Thilini Wijerathne, Ashvitha Wickrama and Christina De Silva in the Senior category

Sri Lanka Karting Circuit (SLKC), Bandaragama concluded ‘The Race for Speedy Pinks’ the first-ever women only karting race in the history of motorsports in the country on 26 October, in aid of Apeksha Hospital Maharagama.

The event was themed on the colour pink in keeping with the ‘pink ribbon’ for breast cancer awareness. ‘Think pink – think genuine’ was also the theme on the t-shirts provided to the participant, authentically tagging the charity aim with that of the main sponsor for the event, Parts and Accessories Division of David Pieris Motor Company Ltd., as Bajaj genuine parts can be differentiated from spurious parts by their pink label.

The race attracted a diverse group of female participants who showed off their skills behind the wheel. Professional racers, volunteers and individual racers – a total of 61 lady drivers participated under three age categories; senior, master and veteran.

The Senior category saw Ashvitha Wickrama, Thilini Wijerathne and Christina De Silva, in first, second and third place respectively. In the Masters category Rashika Shereen took the honours with Vishadini Fernando and Gayani Wasana coming in second and third. Teruni Wikramanayake took the award for the fastest in the Veteran’s category. They all took home attractive medals and bragging rights. The event included practice, qualifying and heats rounds in each category. After which the top 16 drivers in the senior category and a combined masters and veterans category raced it out for the win.

Commenting on David Pieris Racing & Leisure Ltd.’s (DPRL) efforts in organising the charity race, Managing Director Naalaka Madugalle said, “This is the first ever charity race organised by DPRL and we are pleased to see a large number of people joining us to support this worthy cause. Our success wouldn’t have been possible without the generosity of our supporters and specially the participants. Thank you all for your efforts and we promise that we will continue to raise funds for this worthy cause in the future. We’ve discussed with Apeksha Hospital Director Dr. Dissanayake and essential drugs will be purchased from funds raised from the race. These would be handed over to the Director of the Maharagama Apeksha Hospital Dr. Wasantha Dissanayake shortly.”

DPRL anticipates holding this race for International Women’s Day 2020 and once again in October 2020. “We are expecting to hold this event twice a year from next year onwards. Two races, one in the beginning and other at the end of the year,” Madugalle reiterated.

Owned and managed by DPRL, SLKC provides opportunity for karting enthusiasts to experience a world class motorsports facility in Sri Lanka. A fleet of rental karts are available for those who want to try out the sport or simply have a fun-filled thrilling experience. Bambino karts and a separate track for children between the ages of 4-7 is available for driving under skilled supervision, while kids aged 8-12 years can enjoy the main track in Cadet Karts. Youngsters aged 13 and above can enjoy karting and racing on the main track with adults. SLKC provides safety gear such as helmets and gloves ensuring safety of the drivers.