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Last week during the countrya??s first major international surfing event at Arugam Bay Vantin online , an energetic figure could be seen enthusiastically mingling with the eventa??s officials and spectators. Some whom he spoke to perhaps did not know that the man smiling warmly at them was not only one of the main proponents for the development of water sports in the country but is also hailed as Sri Lankaa??s most successful wind surfer.

Thilak Weerasinghe

Throughout the eighties and into the early nineties, Thilak Weerasinghe was a force to be reckoned with in the local and international wind surfing arena. He competed in and dominated events staged in places like Trincomalee, Beruwela and Mount Lavinia and further reinforced his dominance by shining in countries like Germany, Singapore, Holland, France, Belgium and the Maldives. According to Thilak his most memorable and outstanding showing came in an event in Feman, Germany in the mid eighties.

a??I think I really surfed well there and that was probably my best ever performance. I won the event and beat out several of the worlda??s leading wind surfers,a?? Thilak reveals. Thilak took to the water at a very early age, becoming part of the Life Saving Club at Kinross when he was still a teenager. Then, while in Trincomalee, he discovered the sport that was to shape his life for the next several years.

a??It was a new sport to both me and Sri Lanka and I was very excited to learn it. Then gradually I started getting better at it,a?? Thilak explains. In fact Thilak got so good that he not only started winning tournaments but also earned a scholarship from the German Embassy to travel there and be taught the finer points of the sport. Continue reading ‘Water sports crucial to attract tourists: Thilak Weerasinghe’