Sri Lanka’s 18-year-old women’s 200m breaststroke short-course national record was shattered recently by Ramudi Samarakoon, who delivered a splendid performance at the Hungarian Short Course Swimming Championships last week. The Lankan mermaid, who is currently studying at the Corvinus University of Budapest on a World Aquatics scholarship, also managed to renew her own 100m breaststroke short-course record.
During the competition, Ramudi broke the long-standing record set in 2007 by ace swimmer and South Asian Games gold medallist Mayumi Raheem, whose previous mark stood at 2:37.48 minutes. Ramudi completed the 200m breaststroke event in an impressive 2:36.91 minutes. In addition to this achievement, she updated her own 100m breaststroke short-course record by clocking a remarkable 1:12.15 minutes, surpassing her previous record of 1:12.32 set in 2022.
Earlier this year, Ramudi set three long-course national records at the National Championships:
50m breaststroke – 33.65 seconds
100m breaststroke – 1:13.53 minutes
200m breaststroke – 2:39.92 minutes
Beyond her individual accolades, she also holds six relay national records in medley and freestyle events, across both long-course and short-course formats.
With her recent outstanding performances, Ramudi achieved a significant national milestone by securing all six Sri Lankan breaststroke records under her name (50m, 100m, and 200m in both short course and long course). The 23-year-old swimmer is a proud product of Visakha Vidyalaya, Colombo—an institution renowned for producing top-tier national swimmers. She captained her school’s swimming team in 2019, where she dominated the school swimming arena. Her journey began at Killer Whale Aquatics (KWA) at the age of seven, where she quickly rose through the ranks to join their elite squad.
Ramudi has clinched multiple national championships and several international medals representing both KWA and the national team. After gaining valuable experience at age-group competitions, she was selected for the Sri Lanka national contingent for the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati, India. At just 13 years old, she captured a bronze medal, showcasing her early promise. She further demonstrated her talent by winning three silver and four bronze medals at the 2019 South Asian Games in Kathmandu, Nepal.
With her recent form and exceptional performances, many sports experts believe she is poised to deliver a remarkable showing at the 2026 South Asian Games, scheduled to be held in Pakistan next year. Looking ahead, Ramudi hopes her continued progress will secure her a spot at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, and she is committed to giving her utmost to bring glory to her motherland.
