Sir John Tarbat Athletic Meet: St. Joseph Vaz Boys, Lyceum Wattala Girls Overall Champions

St. Joseph’s Vaz College in Wennappuwa and Lyceum International School in Wattala clinched the overall championships for boys and girls, respectively, at the 92nd Ritzbury Sir John Tarbat Senior Athletic Championship, organized by the Sri Lanka Schools Athletic Association, concluded at the Sugathadasa Stadium in Colombo yesterday.

Sandun Koshala and Nethsala Rajapaksha of Lyceum International School were named Best Athletes of the Year for boys and girls.

St Joseph’s Vaz College secured the boys’ championship with 117 points, finishing ahead of St Benedict’s College Kotahena, which scored 77 points, and Maris Stella College Negombo, which came in third with 74 points. For the girls, Lyceum International School overpowered with 189 points, defeating A Ratnayake Central College Walala, which earned 157 points, and Ave Maria Convent Negombo, with 77 points.

Nethsala Rajapaksha set a new meet record in the Under-16 Girls Long Jump with a leap of 6.12 meters, earning 1025 points and the title of Best Girls Athlete of the Year. Sandun Koshala, a hurdler from the same school, won gold in the Under-20 Boys 110m hurdles with a time of 14.10 seconds, scoring 1048 points to be named Best Boys Athlete.

A Ratnayake Central College Walala also excelled in the competition, winning the Outstation Overall Girls Championship with 157 points, while Maris Stella College Negombo claimed the title of Boys Outstation Overall Champions with 74 points.

Tharushi Abhisheka of Wickramabahu CC Gampola, a South Asian Junior Gold medalist, completed a brilliant performance by winning her third gold medal in the girls’ Under-18 1500m with a time of 4:35.84 seconds. She also won gold in the Under-18 800m with a time of 2:10.15 and the Under-18 3000m in 10:18.8.

In total, the four-day meet, sponsored by CBL’s flagship brand Ritzbury for the 12th consecutive year, saw the establishment of two Sri Lanka Youth Records and 20 new meet records.