Mr. Hemasiri Fernando has been elected as a Vice President of the Olympic Council of Asia
July 18, 2011
We are proud and happy to announce that our President, Mr. Hemasiri Fernando has been elected as a Vice President of the Olympic Council of Asia at the General Assembly of O.C.A. held in Tokyo on 14th July 2011.
This honour has been bestowed on Mr. Hemasiri Fernando in recognition of his invaluable services rendered by him to the Olympic Council of Asia and the cause of Olympism as the Chairman of the Culture and Sport Education Committee since 2003 and Member of Finance Committee from 1998 to 2003 and the Executive Board since 2003.
Mr. Fernando at present holds the post of Vice President (Asian Region) of the Commonwealth Games Federation. He thus creates a record by holding the Vice Presidentships of both these global sports bodies at the same time.
Mr. Fernando excelled in several sports in his youth but he chose Rifle Shooting as the sport he would represent Sri Lanka at the Asian Games in 1982 where he was awarded a Diploma in the Rifle 3×40 event. He joined the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka as a Vice President in 1995 and was elected the President in 1997. Since then his contribution to the cause of Olympism in Asia has manifested in several ways.
His monumental achievement is the construction of the “Olympic House” in Colombo.
National Olympic Academy 2011 – “11th Annual session”
July 4, 2011
‘Healthy body and healthy mind inculcate Olympic values in our society and to bring about lasting peace through participation of sports without any barriers in Sri Lanka’
The National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka will be conducting the 11th annual Olympic Academy sessions at Bandarawela from 23rd to 28th Novewmber 2011.At these sessions a wide variety of subjects ranging from Olympism, Olympic Games, Sports and Environment, Sports Psychology will be covered by experienced course directors and resource personnel.
Olympism is synonymous with peace and one of the goals of the Olympic Movement is to contribute towards building a peaceful and better world. The Olympic Spirit is achieved therefore by educating youth on friendship, Solidarity, fair play and mutual understanding.
The Academy has always been the avenue through which we endeavor to translate these principles into action. The wide variety of educational sessions, Academic programmes and enjoyment offered to all participants to serve the vision of the National Olympic Academy. With the passage of time the Academy has undergone changes in its form and content. Same as the last year, this year also we have taken a bold and progressive step by inviting young persons from the NOCs in the South Asian Region to participate in the Academy sessions.
This is indeed very encouraging and could be the first step towards ‘Building a peaceful and better world’