On May 05th 2022, at the invitation of Korean Ambassador Santhush Woonjin Jeong, Dinesh Priyantha Herath the first Gold Medallist for Sri Lanka at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020 paid a visit to the Korean Embassy.
Dinesh Priyantha Herath was the first Sri Lankan to historically win a gold medal at an Olympic event and set a new World Record in the Men’s F46 Javelin Throw with a distance of 67.79m. Korean Ambassador felicitated this great sportsman and congratulated him for his wonderful sportsmanship that has brought great pride to Sri Lanka.
Ambassador Santhush stated that this wonderful success of Dinesh Priyantha Herath has made him a national hero in Sri Lanka.
“You have displayed courage and determination by overcoming many obstacles to achieve this gold medal. Now you are unstoppable and I am confident that you will continue to win more gold medals for Sri Lanka. Korea gives priority to development of Sports and the Korean Embassy has closely worked together with Sri Lankan authorities to develop sports including Taekwondo,” the Embassador said.
“The expansion of Taekwondo movement among Sri Lankans as a popular sport is a wonderful feat. Taekwondo has been instrumental to showcase Sri Lankan talents in international platforms, such as South Asian Games 2019. Likewise I am sure your victory will encourage other budding athletes in Sri Lanka to win many medals in the international arena. The glorious victory is a good start and it is not only an international achievement but a symbol of great strength that will be remembered for many years by all Sri Lankans. You are a national asset to Sri Lanka”, he also said.
Dinesh Priyantha Herath thanked Ambassador Santhush for this opportunity to visit the Embassy and recalled that, “My visit to Korea for the 2014 Asian Games was among the most memorable overseas tours. I was eager to clinch an award but came in 6th, it motivated me to perform better and go ahead to win at Paralympics 2020. Even though there were many challenges, I overcame all those and did my very best for the country.’ He wished that his victory will set an example for all athletes in Sri Lanka to perform well and make their motherland proud by winning awards”.
Ambassador Santhush Woonjin Jeong and Dinesh Priyantha Herath discussed ways to promote sports diplomacy between our two countries in the future. As a reciprocal gesture, Ambassador stated that he hopes to promote the success story of Dinesh Priyantha Herath among Koreans which will contribute to fostering friendly Korea-Sri Lanka ties.
