By Xinhua
Colombo : Sri Lanka will send a boxer ranked within top eight in the world to vie for a medal at the upcoming Olympics – for the first time in 40 overs. According to the Daily News, Sri Lankan Amateur Boxing Association president Dian Gomes will travel to Beijing along with the island’s famous boxer Anuruddha Rathnayake.
“After 40 years, Sri Lanka is sending a boxer to the Olympics and all the long hours of hard work is rewarded. I have complete confidence that he can bring that elusive gold home,” Gomes was quoted as saying by the state-controlled newspaper. The young boxer has just returned to the island after a three-week stint in Cuba, having trained with the members of the Cuban team who are considered the best amateur boxers in the world.
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Nepal to send at least five athletes to Beijing Games
Kathmandu: Nepal will send at least five athletes to the Beijing Olympics, the Nepal Olympic Committee (NOC) has announced. Deepak Bista secured an Olympic berth in taekwondo by winning qualification round and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) allocated two berths each in athletics and swimming.
The team comprising teakwondo ace Deepak Bista along with one of his sparring partner Pushpa Thapa and South Korean coach Kwon Hyouk Joung has already left for Incheon Physical College. They will be going through eight-hour daily training program scheduled to last till this June. NOC executive secretary Sujan Lal Shrestha said Nepal is looking forward to secure wildcard entry mainly in shooting and boxing events.
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Four Nigerian boxers pick Olympic tickets
Lagos: Four Nigerian boxers have qualified for the Olympics as the boxing qualifiers ended in Windhoek, Namibia. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Boxing Federation of Nigeria secretary-general Patrick Uwagbale who led the Nigeria delegation to Windhoek, said Ehiwere Onorode, Dauda Izodo, Ikenne Daloko, and Rasheed Lawal have qualified for the Games.
“We still hope to pick another qualification ticket from the remaining fights,” he said. NAN reported that the Nigerian team comprised 11 boxers and eight officials.
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Kazakh president to join torch relay in Almaty
Almaty: Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev will participate in Wednesday’s torch relay in Almaty, the mayor of Almaty has said. Nazarbayev might be the first to run the Almaty race, but the plan is not settled yet, mayor Imangali Tasmagambetov said.
The relay in Almaty will be divided into two parts. The first part will be carried out on the Medeu snow mountain and the second in the downtown area of the city that ends at the Astana Square, Tasmagambetov said. The mayor said Beijing’s experiences in hosting the Olympics are worth learning as the 2011 Winter Asian Games will be held in Almaty and Astana.
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China’s Asian record holder Zhou battles injuries
Shaoxing (China): Zhou Yafei, Asian record holder of the women’s 100 meters butterfly swimming, is fighting injuries, her biggest enemies ahead of the Olympics. The 24-year-old sprinter managed a third finish in the 100 meters butterfly final at the Chinese national Olympic trials here Monday. Her time of 59.28 seconds was far behind her personal best of 58.20 seconds, which was set in the semi-finals at last year’s Melbourne World Aquatic Championships.
“I know the result is not satisfying at all. But the bronze medal is out of my expectation. I have to say that the shoulder injury stunted my performance at this meet,” said Zhou. She suffered an acute left shoulder ache relapse about 10 days before the Olympic trials, which kicked off Sunday.