The 22nd Birmingham Commonwealth Games began yesterday (28th) in England with a spectacular opening ceremony. The competition will be held from 28th July to 08th August.
The opening ceremony was held in Alexander Grounds in Birmingham which featured several special events including the moving speech given by Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai. Her speech addressed the importance of education. Meanwhile, British Olympic diving champion Tom Daley spoke about LGBTQ+ rights at the event.
The biggest showstopper of the evening was the ‘Raging Bull’ which was introduced to spectators at the Alexander Stadium by female chain makers, pulling the bull along into the center of the arena. The creation reflected the working conditions in the 19th Century, where some women had to work long hours and were underpaid.
Then it was the time for parade of all participating nations where the Australian team entered first being the host of the last Commonwealth Games as per the tradition of the competition. The other countries then made their way into the arena as per alphabetical order from their respective regions.
Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket team skipper Chamari Athapaththu and weightlifter Indika Dissanayake led the Sri Lankan contingent as flag-bearers at the ceremony.
Sri Lanka participating events line-up (29th July)
1.Rugby Sevens
Sri Lanka Women’s rugby team will play their first game of the competition today against England in Group A. They will also meet New Zealand in their second game today. Sri Lanka Men’s rugby team will also play their first game against New Zealand today.
2.Gymnastics
Ruchira Fernando, Gayashan Kumarasinghe and Buddika Fernando will represent Sri Lanka in Gymnastics today. They will participate in Subdivision 1 in the Men’s Team and Individual qualification event.
3.Swimming
Sri Lankan swimmer Akalanka Peiris is set to compete in 50m Butterfly event. He will participate in heat 4 of the event.
4.Boxing
Sri Lankan boxer Sanjeewa Bandara will participate in the 60-63.5kg Light Welterweight event against England boxer Joseph Tyers in the Round of 32.
5.Basketball – 3×3
Sri Lanka 3X3 Men’s and Women’s Basketball teams will begin their campaigns today playing against Scotland and Kenya respectively.
6.Squash
Three Sri Lankans set to compete in the squash events today. Ravindu Laksiri and Shamil Wakeel will play in the Men’s Singles event in the Round of 64 while Yeheni Kuruppu will play in the Women’s Singles event in the Round of 64.
7.Badminton
Sri Lanka Badminton mixed team will play their first game of the competition against Australia in Group A.
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 in England with a spectacular opening ceremony. The competition will be held from 28th July to 08th August.){kind=link}