Sri Lanka’s Rumesh Tharanga won gold in the men’s javelin at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi on Friday, setting a meet record of 89.28 metres against a world-class field.
The throw put Tharanga ahead of Olympic champion Thomas Röhler of Germany and Olympic silver medallist and former world champion Julius Yego of Kenya, both of whom competed at the event. The Kip Keino Classic is part of the World Athletics Continental Tour’s Gold-level series.
It is Tharanga’s second throw above 89 metres in the space of a month, a run of form that places him among the most consistent javelin throwers on the international circuit this season. The distance is within striking range of the 90-metre barrier that separates elite javelin competitors from the world’s best.
The result marks a significant breakthrough for Sri Lankan athletics, which has had limited success in field events at the highest level. Tharanga has been steadily climbing the international rankings through performances at continental meets in Asia and Europe.
The win adds to an emerging profile that could position Tharanga for podium contention at upcoming global championships. It comes the same week that Asanga Seneviratne was elected National Olympic Committee President, signalling a governance shift at the body overseeing Sri Lanka’s Olympic representation. World Athletics rankings and qualification standards for the next world championship cycle are shaped heavily by results at Continental Tour Gold events such as the Kip Keino Classic.
Sri Lanka last produced a world-class javelin thrower in Sumedha Ranasinghe, whose best was under the 85-metre mark. Tharanga’s 89.28m is now among the best throws by a South Asian athlete.
On Monday, Tharanga and his coach met Sports Minister Sunil Kumara Gamage in Colombo, the Sports Ministry said in a statement carried by Newswire. The athlete thanked the minister for the financial and technical assistance provided through the government’s “Mission Olympic” programme, which the ministry said had supported his preparation for the Nairobi meet. Gamage pledged full financial allocations, foreign training and other facilities, calling Tharanga “an athlete who has brought Olympic hope to this country” and saying it was the ministry’s responsibility to provide him with maximum support.
On Tuesday, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) extended a Rs. 10 million financial grant to Tharanga at SLC headquarters, following a request from Sports Minister Gamage. The grant was approved under the direction of SLC President Shammi Silva and the SLC Executive Committee, Newswire reported. SLC said the support is part of its ongoing efforts to promote sports beyond cricket and to assist promising athletes at the international level — a notable move from the cricket board following its own pending leadership transition.
