By Nick Creely
Representing one’s country in sport is an exciting experience.
Representing one’s country at the Olympic Games in Rio is life changing.
Bursting with vibrant culture, and pulsating in history and heritage, Brazil is truly a fabulous country.
From practising in a childhood backyard to competing at the Maracana in the heart of Rio, the stories that have emerged from this year’s Olympic Games are truly inspiring.
The Olympics bring harmony and solidarity to the world in a two-week spectacle of entertainment.
For three local athletes, in particular Narre Warren’s very own badminton champion Sawan Serasinghe, the trip was a truly unforgettable experience.
“The atmosphere was amazing. It really only sunk in for me that I am at the Olympic Games when we walked out onto the stadium at the opening ceremony with the rest of the Australian team,” Serasinghe said.
The young champion said the lessons he learnt from the games, despite a loss the Chinese Taipei 0-2 in the opening round have been invaluable and will hold him in good stead.
“Being the youngest pair, I think most people didn’t expect us to do well against the much older and more experienced pairs.
“We managed to play well against those pairs and really challenge them on every point.
“I think one of the main things I learnt from the games is that I am good enough to compete against the best of the best in the world, and this motivates me to train even harder and, hopefully, win a medal for Australia at the next Olympic Games in Tokyo,” Serasinghe said.
Serasinghe started playing badminton from a young age and through hard work and perseverance has gone on to become an Olympic hero.
“I started training at the age of five back in Sri Lanka when my parents first introduced badminton to me.
“I think I really fell in love with the sport around the age of 10 when I won my first junior national title.”
He also gave an insight into the routine of an athlete and how he prepares for tournaments.
“I normally train six days a week, usually two to three sessions a day. That can vary between on-court training and off-court training in the gym.
“The Australian national team is based in Melbourne, so all my on court training is done at The Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre and all of my strength and conditioning training is at the Victorian Institute of Sport in Albert Park,” he said.
Serasinghe is setting his sights on the next lot of major tournaments and is excited about the prospect of representing his country once again.
“Currently I am preparing to head off to Europe at the end of October to play the European circuit.
“My main goal is to win a medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.
“I think playing in front of your home crowd will be an amazing experience and I am definitely looking forward to that,” Serasinghe said.
Other local heroes, hockey’s Chris Cirvello from Endeavour Hills and table tennis player Heming Hu from Dandenong proudly represented Australia at the games.
Cirvello, 30, represented the Australian men’s hockey team in his second appearance at the Olympic Games, where the team lost the quarter-finals 0-4 to a star studded Netherlands outfit.
Heming Hu, 22, competed in the table tennis event with fellow team mates David Powell and Chris Yan, before going down 0-3 to Hong Kong.
Despite the trio’s best efforts and a typical fighting spirit from the Australians, they will now need to set their sights on Olympic glory in Tokyo 2020.
