Asanga Seneviratne, the current President of the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union will take over the reins of Secretary General of the Asian Rugby Football Union (ARFU) from Ross Mitchell in the Annual General Meeting which will be held on from the 6-8 December in Cambodia.
Speaking to ThePapare.com Mr. Senviratne ‘I think most importantly, it has to be understood that although rugby has grown continuously in Asia which is the most populous continent in the world, there hasn’t been a lot of world recognition in terms of Rugby except for Japan, who have been the only country heavily involved in the world stage.’
‘It is crucial that at an international level more Asian teams should participate in the world stage, and my priority is to help achieve this goal. Japan is the only country in Asia that plays teams like Argentina, Wales and France going on to show the need for improvement.’ he said.
He also noted that ‘The Serendib International Cup was a small step towards achieving this goal, especially due to the involvement of an African and European nation, however next year we are hoping to see six teams and grow the tournament into becoming a mini world cup.’
Asanga also believes that unless Asia attains a level that would mean heavy participation for the teams within the frame work, it is very difficult to improve on a financial model, especially since money should be generated to further develop the sport domestically.
‘I am also thankful for everyone who supported me towards this achievement, and I think it is a great opportunity as well’ he said.
Asanga will be the first Sri Lanka to hold this post, and was nominated by Japan and India, while being seconded by UAE. He will hold the post of Secretary General of the ARFU for a time period of two years.
