Weightlifter Dilanka clinches Silver Medal in Uzbekistan-by Upananda Jayasundera
Twenty five year old, Dilanka Isuru Kumara, a weightlifter attached to the Sri Lanka Army as a Lance Corporal of the Panagoda Camp won a Silver Medal for clean & Jerk lifting 137 Kg. and won a Bronze Medal lifting a full total of 241 Kg. in the 55 Kg. weight class at the Asian Weightlifting Championship held from 16th to 25th of April, 2021 at Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
He is an old boy of Gettumana Maha Vidyalaya, Kurunegala from Grade One to Eleven and joined the John Kothalawala National School to do higher studies. After leaving school he joined Sri Lanka Army in 2016 and now he is stationed at Panagoda Army Camp.
Isuru Kumara started weightlifting under the coaching of Rukshan Gunathillake, a talented Weightlifter in the year 2010 when he was studying at Gettumana Maha Vidyalaya. At the start he participated at the Junior National Weightlifting Championship from 2011 to 2016 under the 50 Kg. weight class and 55 Kg. weight class without much success. He proved his class at the National Weightlifting Championship when he won his weight class of 55 Kg.continuously from the year 2016 to 2019.
In the year 2013 he toured Malaysia for the Youth Commonwealth Games and was placed fourth in 50 Kg. weight class and in 2016 again he toured Malaysia for the Youth Commonwealth Championship and won the 55 Kg. weight class. In addition he secured the Champion Trophy at the National Sports Festival in the year 2018 and in 2020 he established three National Records in snatch (111 Kg.) Clean and Jerk (140 Kg.) and a full total of 251 Kg. at the Weightlifting trials.
In the year 2017 he toured Japan for the Junior Asian Championship held at Tokyo and was placed seventh and in 2019 at the Asian Weightlifting Championship held in China he was placed third.
In the same year he won his weight class of 55 Kg. at the South Asian Weight Lifting Contest held in Nepal.
At present Isuru Kumara is training for the World Championship to be held later this year and for the Commonwealth Championship to be held in England next Year. He is thankful to the Sri lanka Army and to his first weightlifting coach Rukshan Gunathillake for the guidance given to him.
