Another medal hope dashed for Sri Lanka at the Commonwealth Games

Shamseer Jaleel reporting from Australia

Sri Lankan contingent suffered another huge blow when the medal prospect, Matthew Abeysinghe, finished 8th in the Men’s 50m Freestyle Swimming semi-final at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast yesterday.

This was the final event at the 21st Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, with Matthew clocking in at 22.65 seconds in the quarter final heats which earned him a place in the semi-finals. He was placed 13th out of the 16 competitors. 

England’s Benjamin Proud finished the event with a timing of 21.30, which is a new record. Earlier, Sri Lanka lost another medal prospect when skipper, Vidanage, lost out in the weightlifting event, securing the 5th position. In boxing, Vidanalge Bandara in the 52 kg category beat Yachen Cook (NRU) in the 16th round and qualified for the quarter final event.