Milka first Sri Lankan gymnast to qualify-by SUSIL PREMALAL

Sri Lanka’s first gymnastic Olympian (Tokyo 2020), Milka Gehani de Silva, has qualified for the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2023.

She is the first Sri Lankan to qualify for the championship, which will be held from September 30 to October 8 in Antwerp, Belgium.

The 20-year-old secured her spot to compete after placing 10th at the Asian Gymnastics Championship 2023 in Singapore.

In the Singapore Asian Championship, she qualified for the World Championship title after finishing
10th out of 58 players. Three Chinese, two South Koreans, and players from Indonesia, the Philippines, Taipei, and Uzbekistan finished in front of Milka, while other countries from Asia, including India, were ranked behind.

At the Asian Gymnastics Championship, Milka scored 12.700 points in the Vault event, 12.566 points in the Uneven bars event, 11.933 points in the Balance Beam event, and 12.333 points in the Floor Exercise event, for a total of 49.532 points to qualify for the World Gymnastics Championship 2023.

Milka, who is studying at Japan University, said her only goal is to qualify for the Paris Olympics through the World Gymnastics Championship this year.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror, Milka said, “I was unable to perform at the Tokyo Games. The main reason for that was a lack of experience at the international level. But that is not a problem for me. My only hope is to bring a gymnastic Olympic medal to Sri Lanka.”