Sport
3 January, 2025
Asthika Koswattage becomes newest Maryborough Gift men’s champion after storming run
It was a snap decision Asthika Koswattage made five years ago which set the stage for a blockbuster start to 2025.
“The funny story is that I was never meant to be an athlete again, I quit the sport when I was 14 years old, but on my 21st birthday here in Australia, I decided to give athletics a second chance, and I only started running again at the start of 2020, so I’m five years in,” he said, moments after taking out the 162nd Max Martin Memorial Maryborough Gift.
12.734 seconds, and 120 metres, was all it took for that decision for Koswattage to yield the ultimate reward.
Koswattage, originally from Sri Lanka, had departed the country in 2015 to move to Australia.
Athletics wasn’t in that initial plan, but that moment in 2020 was what turned out to be a life-changer.
“When I left the country, I had no plans on starting athletics, with personal life getting in the way and mental health, I was going through some stuff, but athletics was the way of getting back into the field and building myself again as a person,” he said.
“I was at my lowest point around 2017 or 2018, and I said I would stop everything on the side, put my spikes back on and give it a try. So, this is where it took me. I’m really happy with where I’m at right now.”
So, Koswattage’s win on the New Year’s Day classic to kickstart 2025 was one that he said was a long time coming, and the perfect way to end his first decade in Australia.
“It feels good. I was waiting to win my first open Gift race, and I’m really happy with what I’ve done, particularly at a prestigious race like the Maryborough Gift,” he said.
“The way I finished last season, I felt I could actually win a Gift, and to do it with the same handicap I finished with last season is a big thing for me.
“This matters more to me because this year is my 10th year in the country. I’m actually from Sri Lanka, and I moved from there in February 2015, and this is a great way for me to start this year. It’s personally a great achievement to celebrate the 10-year anniversary in Australia.”
Koswattage battled through a gruelling day, and went up to his starter blocks in lane five for the final trying to forget about everything that had happened before that.
He had finished third in his semi-final — a bout of frustration, which Koswattage said boiled down to him perhaps ‘trying too hard’.
But with a fierce headwind proving problematic throughout the day, Koswattage swept all of it aside when it mattered most.
“This is the first time I’ve experienced a headwind throughout the season in a race,” he said.
“At training, I would always ask my coach to train me in a way to handle the headwinds, but it was really hard, timing-wise and headwind-wise for a build like mine.
“I got through the heats, and the semi’s — I came third but I wasn’t happy, especially with the wind, and I felt I was trying too hard.”
All this came after going all-in, betting on himself that he would bring home a sash.
“I got to the final and I thought ‘this is what I’m here for, and this is what I’m going to do’, because on New Year’s Eve, I made some space for another sash in the house,” Koswattage said.
“I left thinking it would be where I hang my Maryborough sash. Everything came to my mind when I lined up for the final, and I decided this was it, no-one will get in my head and I’ll do my thing.
“I didn’t have a great semi, but that’s wasn’t going to get into my head for the final, I just wanted to run a good race, and that’s what I did.”
Koswattage didn’t panic when it came to his strategy towards the final — although there was a focus on getting his start right.
“I didn’t really change much in the way I run or anything,” he said.
“I don’t really have an excellent block start, it’s the mid part of my race and the last part of my race where I go well, but I took a deep breath, got into the block start and said I would execute this race properly.
“Once I start behind my blocks, I’m in my own zone and my own lane, I don’t look around.”
That decision paid dividends throughout the race.
While it looked like Bailey Culbert, it the middle lane, made a terrific start, Koswattage soon lived up to his own word, motoring to the front by the midway point of the race, before holding off the challenges and advances of Dash Muir, runner-up in lane two, while Aidan Green in lane three ran in third.
Koswattage knows the win means people will now take notice of him as one to watch, particularly when it comes to Stawell, which is his next target.
“Since I’ve won this, I’ll get more of a handicap for Stawell, so it’s going to be a challenge, but I’m going to give it a shot. I will look to do my best there this year,” he said.