Dinesh Weerawansa
| Dinesh Weerawansa | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 17, 1966 Negombo, Sri Lanka |
| Residence | Rajagiriya 10107, Sri Lanka. |
| Nationality | Sri Lankan |
| Alma mater |
Royal College Colombo, Thomson Foundation,UK University of Athens |
| Occupation |
Media personality / Editor-in-Chief Sunday Observer |
| Spouse(s) | Shashithanganee Weerawansa (university lecturer) |
| Children | Oshari and Pansiluni |
Dinesh Weerawansa (born 17 June 1966) was Editor-in-Chief of the Sunday Observer from 2006 to 2014., heading the editorial operation of Sri Lanka's oldest English newspaper which has the largest circulation - published by the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited. In addition, he also functions as Associate Editor/ Sports Editor of the Daily News and a visiting lecturer at National Olympic Academy of Sri Lanka.[1][2]
Early life
Weerawansa was born to Cosmas Damian (lecturer) and Mercy Edna (teacher) in 17 June 1966 at Negombo, Sri Lanka. He was educated at the prestigious Royal College Colombo and was senior college prefect 1984/85. He then pursued further studies at the Thomson Foundation,UK, Thomson Foundation,UK and the International Olympic Academy (IOA). In 1994, he was selected by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Japan to represent Sri Lanka at the South Asian Youth Exchange program. Only Sri Lankan media personality to be trained in the world-renowned IOA in Athena, Greece. Holds a diploma in sports leadership conducted by the International Olympic Committee.
He is honorary member of the International Taekwon-Do Federation he has been Sri Lanka’s prolific Sports Editor / sports journalist for nearly three decades and is also the IAAF athletic correspondent for Sri Lanka and he is the most experienced and travelled sports writer in Sri Lanka who has covered five editions of the Olympic Games (1992, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012), seven IAAF World Athletic Championships (2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013) and five Asian Games (1994, 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2010).
Weerawansa has covered many milestone events in Sri Lanka sport, including Susanthika Jayasinghe winning the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games silver medal and 2007 World Championship bronze medal as well as Damayanthi Darsha and Sugath Tillakaratne winning gold medals for Sri Lanka (3) after 25 years at 1998 Bangkok Asian Games. He had also served as a radio and television commentator at several international events, including Olympic Games, Asian Games, South Asian Games and Test/ ODI international cricket matches and represented Sri Lanka at the Asian Sports Press Union Congress in Seoul in 1990 and 1992 and South Asian Sports Association in Dhaka, 1993 - was elected Chairman of its Cricket Commission.
Family
He is married to Shashithanganee Weerawansa (university lecturer) and has two daughters Oshari and Pansiluni
International assignments as a media personality & Sports assignments
- XXVth Olympic Games in Barcelona, 1992
- XXV11 Olympic Games in Sydney, 2000
- XXV111 Olympic Games in Athens, 2004
- XX1X Olympic Games in Beijing, 2008
- XXX Olympic Games in London, 2012
- 8th IAAF World Championships in Edmonton, 2001
- 9th IAAF World Championships in Paris-Saint Dennis, 2003
- 10th IAAF World Championships in Helsinki, 2005
- 11th IAAF World Championships in Osaka, 2007
- 12th IAAF World Championships in Berlin, 2009
- 13th IAAF World Championships in Daegu, 2011
- 14th IAAF World Championships in Moscow, 2013
- 11th Asian Games in Hiroshima, 1994
- 12th Asian Games in Bangkok, 1998
- 13th Asian Games in Busan, 2002
- 14th Asian Games in Doha, 2006
- 15th Asian Games in Guangzhou, 2010
- Asian Athletic Championships in Manila, 1993
- South Asian Games in Dhaka, 1993
- Asian Athletic Grand Prix Manila, 2007
General assignments
- Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth, 2011
- President Mahinda Rajapaksa's state visit to Japan, 2007
References
- ↑ President Rajapaksa’s sustained passion with sports. Daily News, Retrieved on 4 February 2014.
- ↑ D - DAY FOR SCHOOLBOY CRICKETERS. Sunday Observer, Retrieved on 20 June 2010.