Dian Gomes, a name synonymous with boxing in Sri Lanka, is embarking on a third round as the head of the Amateur Boxing Association of Sri Lanka (ABA) which was confirmed at a press briefing recently.
Gomes’ first stint as the head of the ABA was in 2004 and it was during this successful first tenure that boxer Anuruddha Ratnayake qualified for the Beijing Olympics in 2008. It was after a lapse of four decades, since H.K. Karunaratne in 1968, that Sri Lanka was able to achieve this.
Gomes’ second stint started in 2017 and continues to date, a period during which Sri Lankan pugilists participated in 35 international boxing meets, bagging 35 medals. In the year 2018 Sri Lankan boxers were able to bag three bronze medals at the Commonwealth Games held in Gold Coast, Australia and that was achieved after a lapse of 68 years.
Gomes briefing the media stressed, “We have the talent as we showed our capabilities in the recent past but the only thing is that the participants should be given the support, encouragement and confidence to achieve what we want.”
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