Milka Gehani

Milka Gehani
Gehani at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics
Personal information
Full nameElpitiya Badalge Dona Milka Gehani Divyanjala De Silva
Alternative name(s)Milka Gehani De Silva[1]
Nickname(s)Miki
Born (2003-04-24) 24 April 2003 (age 21)
Colombo, Sri Lanka
HometownPiliyandala, Sri Lanka
Height1.40 m (4 ft 7 in)[2]
Gymnastics career
DisciplineWomen's artistic gymnastics
Country represented Sri Lanka
Training locationTokyo, Japan
LevelSenior International Elite
GymTsukahara Gymnastics Center
Former coach(es)Ranjana Tharanga

Milka Gehani Elpitiya Badalge Dona also known as Milka Gehani de Silva (born 24 April 2003)[2] is a Sri Lankan artistic gymnast. She earned a continental quota spot to the 2020 Summer Olympics after the cancellation of the 2021 Asian Championships. She was the first Sri Lankan gymnast across all disciplines to compete in the Olympics. She also represented Sri Lanka at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics and the 2019 and 2022 World Championships.

Early life

Milka Gehani was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2003. She won her first junior national title at the age of eight.[1] In 2019, she received an IOC-funded scholarship to receive training in Japan.[3]

Career

Junior

Milka made her international debut at the 2016 Junior Commonwealth Championships in Namibia, qualifying for every individual final. She finished tenth in the all-around final, sixth on the vault, sixth on the uneven bars, fifth on the balance beam, and sixth on floor exercise, also contributing to the Sri Lankan team's fourth-place finish.[4]

In May 2017, Milka competed at the Asian Junior Championships in Bangkok, Thailand, placing eighth with the Sri Lankan team and 17th in the all-around.[5] She improved that result at the 2018 Asian Junior Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, finishing 14th all-around.[6] She represented Sri Lanka at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she placed 28th all-around in qualifications but did not make the finals. In the mixed multi-discipline team event, her team finished ninth.[7]

Senior

Milka became age-eligible for senior competition in 2019. She began training in Japan in 2019 after receiving a scholarship from the International Olympic Committee.[3] She made her World Championship debut at the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. She placed 114th in qualifications, missing out on Olympic qualification.[8] In September 2020, she competed at the All-Japan Senior Championships in Takasaki, placing 40th in the all-around.[9]

In May 2021, she was awarded one of the two available Asian continental berths to the 2020 Summer Olympics due to the cancellation of the 2021 Asian Championships, as she was the highest ranked eligible athlete based on the results of the 2019 World Championships.[1][10] This marked Sri Lanka's debut in gymnastics at the Olympic Games.[11][12] She also became the second Sri Lankan athlete to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after Mathilda Karlsson.[13] In July, it was announced that Milka would be Sri Lanka's flag bearer at the 2020 Summer Olympics Parade of Nations alongside judoka Chamara Dharmawardana, becoming the country's youngest ever flag bearer.[14] At the Olympic Games, Milka placed 78th in the all-around during qualifications, and did not advance to the final.[15] She received an extension to her scholarship to continue her training in Japan for another two years after the Olympics.[16]

After the Olympic Games, Milka competed at the 2021 All-Japan Senior Championships, finishing seventh in the all-around.[17] Then she competed at the All-Japan Team Championships, finishing ninth in the all-around and helping her club finish seventh.[18] At the 2022 All-Japan Championships, she finished 73rd in the all-around qualification round.[19] Then at the 2022 Asian Championships, she finished eleventh in the all-around and qualified for the World Championships.[20] She withdrew from the all-around final at the Commonwealth Games due to an injury. Then at the World Championships, she withdrew after injuring her right foot on the floor exercise.[21]

Milka finished ninth in the all-around at the 2023 Asian Championships and qualified for the 2023 World Championships.[22] She also qualified for the uneven bars event final where she finished sixth.[23]

Competitive history

Milka vaulting at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics
Year Event Team AA VT UB BB FX
Junior
2016 Junior Commonwealth Championships 4 10 6 6 5 6
2017
Asian Junior Championships 8 17
2018
Asian Junior Championships 10 14
Youth Olympic Games 9 28
Senior
2019
World Championships 114
2020 All-Japan Senior Championships 40
2021
Olympic Games 78
All-Japan Senior Championships 7
All-Japan Team Championships 7 9
2022 All-Japan Championships 73
Asian Championships 11
Commonwealth Games 8 DNF
World Championships DNF
2023
Asian Championships 9 6

References

  1. ^ a b c "Sri Lankan gymnast Milka Gehani qualifies for Tokyo Olympics". Ada Derana. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Milka Gehani Tokyo 2020 Athlete Profile". International Olympic Committee. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  3. ^ a b Kaluarachchi, Anjana (6 May 2021). "Gymnast Milka Qualifies for Tokyo Olympics". Ceylon Today. Archived from the original on 13 June 2021.
  4. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (12 October 2016). "2016 Junior Commonwealth Championships results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  5. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (17 May 2017). "2017 Asian Junior Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  6. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (30 April 2018). "2018 Asian Junior Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  7. ^ "Milka Elpitiya". Olympedia. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  8. ^ "49th FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships Stuttgart (GER), 4 October - 13 October 2019 Women's All-Around Qualification" (PDF). Gymnastics Results. International Gymnastics Federation. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  9. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (22 September 2020). "2020 All-Japan Senior Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  10. ^ "Sri Lankan Gymnast Milka Gehani Earns Wings to Tokyo Olympics". Sri Lanka Foundation. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  11. ^ "Gymnast Milka secures Tokyo Olympics spot". Daily News. 7 May 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  12. ^ "Sri Lanka in Artistic Gymnastics". Olympedia. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  13. ^ "Gymnast Gehani second to qualify for Tokyo Olympics". Sunday Observer. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  14. ^ Seneviratne, Akhila (12 July 2021). "Sri Lankan Flag Bearers at the Olympics: Carrying more than just a flag". The Papare. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  15. ^ "Artistic Gymnastics - Women's All-Around Qualification Results" (PDF). International Olympic Committee. 25 July 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2021.
  16. ^ "Milka Gehani's scholarship to train in Japan extended". Daily News. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2023.
  17. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (27 September 2021). "2021 All-Japan Senior Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  18. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (13 December 2021). "2021 All-Japan Team Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  19. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (23 April 2022). "2022 All-Japan Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  20. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (17 July 2022). "China Wins All-Around, Team Gold as Worlds Qualification is Decided in Doha". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  21. ^ "Elpitiya Badalge Dona Milka Gehani". International Gymnastics Federation. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  22. ^ "Milka Gehani qualifies for 2023 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships". Ada Derana. 17 June 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2023.
  23. ^ Hopkins, Lauren (21 June 2023). "2023 Asian Championships Results". The Gymternet. Retrieved 2 August 2023.