Sri Lankan women’s rugby captain goes missing in S.Korea

The South Korean Police has launched an investigation into an incident where the captain of the Sri Lanka women’s rugby team, Dulani Palliyakondage has gone missing following the Asia Rugby Sevens Series.

She is said to have gone missing after the prize-giving ceremony of the tournament yesterday (14). The management of the team has taken steps to make a complaint to the police through the South Korea Rugby Union and it is said that no information has been received until last evening.

The Sri Lankan women’s and men’s rugby teams were scheduled to return to Sri Lanka last night. The South Korean police had informed the Sri Lankan officials that they will continue their efforts to locate her.

Dulani, who played in the women’s final of the Women’s Championship with the Hong Kong team on the last day of the tournament in Namdong, South Korea, joined her team to watch the men’s team between Sri Lanka and the Philippines for the third place. It is also reported that she had talked to the media later on about the team’s defeat and the team’s weaknesses.

The manager had gathered the players to go back to the hotel and she had learned that the team leader was not present at the moment. She had broadcast two messages in Sinhala through the loudspeakers of the stadium asking her to come back to the place where the team was staying.

The manager, who sent the athletes back to the hotel by the team bus about an hour later, has been trying hard to find the missing captain along with the manager of the men’s team, officials of the South Korean Rugby Union and police officers.

The 30-year-old Dulani Palliyakondage, who is an excellent player born in Matara, has represented the national team for almost a decade and has shown outstanding performance in the Asian rugby field.

She has also participated in the rugby tournament of the Commonwealth Games held in England recently.

She has played a great role towards the success of her team in the inter-club rugby field representing the Sri Lanka Army Sports Club.