Kyle Abeysinghe (born 4 February 2000) is a Sri Lankan national swimmer who has represented his country at several international competitions. Domestically, Abeysinghe holds numerous national records, has been a national champion multiple times, and is a member of the Killer Whale Aquatic Club, coached by his father, Manoj Abeysinghe. At the 2017 Youth Commonwealth Games in Nassau, Bahamas, Abeysinghe won two silver medals in the 50m and 100m freestyle, becoming the only Sri Lankan swimmer to achieve this feat.
Career
His first time representing Sri Lanka was at the FINA Youth Programme in Doha, Qatar in 2014. Since then, he has represented Sri Lanka at the 2015 Junior World Swimming Championships held in Singapore,[1] the 2016 South Asian Games held in Guwahati, India, where he won 4 medals: one gold, two silvers, and one bronze. Subsequently, he competed in the 2016 South Asian Aquatic Championships held in Colombo, Sri Lanka and the 2016 World Swimming Championships held in Windsor, Canada.[2] At the 2016 South Asian Aquatic Championships he won 4 gold medals and 1 silver medal in his individual events.[3]
In addition, he helped Sri Lanka secure three gold medals and two silver medals in all five relays, bringing his medal tally to seven gold and three silver, tying his brother Matthew for most medals won.[4] In Windsor, Abeysinghe broke two national records in the 200-meter Individual Medley (IM) and the 200-meter Freestyle. The 200m IM record was previously held by the 2012 London Olympian Heshan Unamboowe ,and the 200m Freestyle record was held by his elder brother, Olympian Matthew Abeysinghe.
The next year, at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games in Nassau, Bahamas, Abeysinghe achieved unprecedented levels of success for Sri Lanka, winning two silver medals in the 50m and 100m Freestyle events. He became one of the very few Sri Lankan athletes, and the only swimmer, to ever medal at a Commonwealth Games event. Just a few months later, Abeysinghe competed at the 2017 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships. In early 2018, Abeysinghe competed at the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. There, he was part of the 4x100 Freestyle Relay, the first Sri Lankan swimming relay team to ever make the final at the Commonwealth Games. Later that year, during the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, Abeysinghe swam the second-fastest 100m Freestyle by a Sri Lankan, behind only his elder brother, Matthew. Subsequently, Abeysinghe was selected to represent his country at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Argentina, where he aimed to continue his medal-winning form Due to medical reasons, he was unable to compete, and his teammate Akalanka Pieris attended in his stead. In December 2018, Abeysinghe competed at the 2018 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) in Hangzhou, China.[5]
2014 Fina Youth Programme
Abeysinghe was one of two swimmers chosen to represent Sri Lanka at the FINA Youth Programme in Doha, Qatar.
2015 Junior World Championships
Abeysinghe was chosen to represent Sri Lanka at the Junior World Championships held in Singapore. He swam the 50-meter, 100-meter, and 200-meter Freestyle events, along with the 200-meter Individual Medley.
2016 South Asian Games
In December 2015, Abeysinghe was named to the large contingent of swimmers chosen to represent Sri Lanka at the South Asian Games in Guwahati, India, in February 2016. Abeysinghe was part of the 4x100m Freestyle relay team that made history by winning the event, beating India after 25 years. He also earned two silver medals in the 4x200m Freestyle relay and the 4x100m Medley relay, as well as a bronze medal in his only individual event, the 400m Freestyle.
Abeysinghe at the 2016 South Asian Games
2016 South Asian Aquatic Championships
Abeysinghe won seven gold medals and three silver medals, his highest tally at any international competition.
Abeysinghe at the 2016 South Asian Aquatic Championships
2016 World Championships
Following his performance at the SAAC, Abeysinghe was chosen to represent Sri Lanka at the World Championships held in Windsor, Canada. In Windsor, Abeysinghe broke two national records in the 200m Freestyle and 200m IM, one previously held by his older brother Matthew and the other by Heshan Unamboowe.
2017 Commonwealth Youth Games
In July 2017, Abeysinghe was named to Sri Lanka's 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games team.[6][7][8] During the competition, he won two silver medals in the men's 100m and 50m freestyle events, marking Sri Lanka's first-ever swimming medals at either the Youth or Senior Commonwealth Games.[9]
Abeysinghe at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games
2017 Junior World Championships
Following his performance at the Youth Commonwealth Games, Abeysinghe was chosen for the Sri Lankan national team for the Junior World Championships in Indianapolis, USA.
2018 Commonwealth Games
In February 2018, Abeysinghe was named to Sri Lanka's 2018 Commonwealth Games team. Although he was injured during the competition, he helped make Sri Lankan swimming history in the 4x100m Freestyle relay by qualifying for the first-ever final at a Commonwealth Games. Unfortunately, they were disqualified in the final due to an early start by the anchor leg.[10][11]
2018 Asian Games
Abeysinghe was named to the 2018 Asian Games team in July of the same year after winning three events at the Asian Games Trial held at Sugathadasa Stadium. At the Asian Games, his times of 23.36 and 50.14 in the 50m and 100m Freestyle events, respectively, were the second-fastest times in Sri Lankan history, behind only his elder brother Matthew Abeysinghe.
Abeysinghe competing at the 2018 Asian Games
Personal life
Kyle Abeysinghe lives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and attended Wycherley International School. He trains under his swim coach and father, Manoj Abeysinghe, at the Killer Whale Aquatic Club (KWA), the most successful club in Sri Lanka. His family is renowned for their swimming achievements within Sri Lanka's sporting community. Kyle has four elder brothers, all accomplished swimmers. His eldest brother, Andrew Abeysinghe, is a former national champion, national record holder, and multiple South Asian Games gold medalist. Matthew Abeysinghe, his second eldest brother, holds the record for the most gold medals won at a single South Asian Games, is an Olympian, former national champion, national record holder, and South Asian record holder. Dillon Abeysinghe, the third eldest brother, is a former national champion, national record holder, and South Asian Aquatic Championship medalist.
Their father, Manoj Abeysinghe, is esteemed as one of the greatest coaches in Sri Lankan swimming, having produced numerous international medalists, national record holders, and national champions. Since its establishment in 2010, under his guidance, Killer Whale Aquatics has secured the most national championships in both SCM and LCM.
Together, Abeysinghe and his three brothers hold the national record in the 4x50 Medley Relay.[citation needed]
^Inshaf Cafoor (2 December 2016). "Kyle Abeysinghe and Kimiko Raheem for World Swimming Championships". Retrieved 24 January 2017. ...Sri Lanka fields Kyle Abeysinghe and Kimiko Raheem for the FINA World Swimming Championships that will commence on the 6th of December in Canada.
^The Sunday Times (23 October 2016). "Sanjay, Mathews and Kimiko win 5 gold each". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 24 January 2017. ...Sri Lanka's Kyle Abeysinghe, brother of Mathew Abeysinghe, won 4 individual Gold and one Silver.
^Farhan Uvais (9 December 2016). "Kyle Abeysinghe breaks two national records". Daily Sports. Retrieved 24 January 2017. ... the 200m Freestyle event at the 13th FINA short course Swimming Championships in Ontario, Canada.
