Sri Lanka’s 1st Gold Medal Winner

by N. Ethirveerasingham, July 8, 2021

In 1958, two time Olympian, Nagalingam Ethirveerasingam, won the 1st ever Gold Medal in ANY sport for Sri Lanka (Ceylon) at the 3rd Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan. In this video Ethir narrates the silent film of the Asian Games, which includes film of his winning jump at the 9:00 min mark. He talks about the controversy of initially not being selected in the team even though he had qualified and was the co-Asian Games and Ceylon record holder. He describes how Carlton Seneviratne, Sports Editor of the Daily News, and Donovan Andre, an entertainer and businessman, rallied support and funds so that the National Olympic Committee and the Athletic Association reversed their decision.

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