Sri Lanka's Rumesh Tharanga Pathirage says winning the country's first-ever Commonwealth Games gold medal in the men's javelin throw has strengthened his belief that he can challenge for a medal at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
"I'm incredibly happy to bring the first javelin gold medal to Sri Lanka," Tharanga told reporters after his victory. "Bringing this gold medal means everything to me, and I'm proud to hear our national anthem played as I stood on the podium for Sri Lanka."
South Asian athletes have enjoyed remarkable success in the men's javelin at recent Commonwealth Games. India's Neeraj Chopra claimed gold at Gold Coast 2018 before Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem triumphed at Birmingham 2022. Both later went on to become Olympic champions at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, respectively.
While those achievements have raised expectations for Tharanga's Olympic prospects, the Sri Lankan remains focused on improving his own performances rather than comparisons with other athletes.
"To be very honest, the weather conditions were very tough for us," he said, referring to the windy conditions at Scotstoun Stadium. "But I tried to throw my own distance rather than trying to match other people's distances."
Tharanga is also an International Olympic Committee (IOC) scholarship holder. Through Olympic Solidarity's monthly grants, the programme supports athletes with training, equipment, travel and qualification expenses, helping them prepare for future Olympic Games.
Following his historic Commonwealth Games triumph, Tharanga now turns his attention to building towards the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, where he hopes to become Sri Lanka's next Olympic medal contender.
