No facilities, no problem: How Sri Lanka's Nethmi Ahinsa Poruthotage gave up everything to chase her dreams
Growing up in rural village in west Sri Lanka, Nethmi Ahinsa Poruthotage could only dream of competing in an international freestyle wrestling competition.
While most of her future rivals honed their skills in modern facilities, the Kurunegala native trained on sawdust, straw mats, and the beach.
But there was another factor holding the teenager back. Without access to good nutritional sustenance or education, Poruthotage was out of shape. Ironically, this was why she was allowed to take up the sport in the first place.
“I was a little bit fat when I first started, weighing 68 kgs. My father wanted me to be healthy, so he agreed that I could wrestle,” Poruthotage told Olympics.com.
“Normally, parents where I come from do not allow girls to play this kind of sport, so I’m grateful to my parents for giving me permission.
“Wrestling made me healthy and happy, and made my four limbs strong. We had a lot of difficulties but wrestling gave me a second go at life for which I am so grateful.”
Nethmi Poruthotage flips an opponent during a beach training session in Sri Lanka.
How wrestling and jackfruit made Nethmi Poruthotage strong
Poruthotage's father is a mason and her mother was a housewife, looking after three children.
Their house was only half built and providing enough food for the family was hard.
But after recognising Poruthotage's raw talent, her wrestling coach Suranga Kumara decided to do whatever he could to help his protege reach her potential - even if it meant dipping into his own savings.
Coach Kumara, who also lived a modest life, took out several loans to pay for better food and basic training equipment.
“Apart from my parents, my coach and his wife did all the training activities, and provided food," Poruthotage recalled.
"Nutrition is vital for athletes and while we had nothing luxury, I was able to get the basics through jackfruit, manioc, and sweet potatoes.”
Nethmi Poruthotage started wrestling to get fit, and achieved that goal through gruelling beach training sessions in Sri Lanka.
In the absence of a wrestling mat, their group would train on a mound of sawdust. Eventually, this was upgraded to an old mat donated by the Sri Lanka Judo Federation.
But that only solved half of their problem.
“We did not have a place to set it up, so it was placed in our local village temple. However, this is supposed to be a place of prayer and silence, so we were made to pack up and leave,” Poruthotage continued.
Kumara selflessly gave the mat a new home in his small backyard which now served as a training facility.
The mat would get wet when rain seeped through the rusted tin sheets of the roof, but the pair were overjoyed to finally have a space that allowed them to focus on training.
“We just kept wiping the mattress and continued wrestling," Poruthotage said with a smile. "We’ve trained like this for the past four years!”
Nethmi Poruthotage's meteoric rise
Poruthotage would attend practice after school from 7pm to 11pm every day. During exam time she would wake up at 2:30am to study, ensuring she wouldn't have to miss any practice sessions.
Despite her exhausting schedule, she was also able to pin down the top spot in the classroom.
The duo's dedication was soon rewarded when Poruthotage landed the district wrestling title, the national inter-provincial wrestling tournament for North Central Province, and the 57kg title at the 2019 National Wrestling Championship in quick succession.
“I won gold medals after just two months of training. My coach took me to competitions around the country to show me how to fight. Since then I have not given any point in a six-minute match to any opponent,” she said proudly.
After conquering her domestic rivals, Poruthotage passed her first international test with flying colours by placing seventh in the 57kg division at the 2021 World Junior Championships.
Her reward was a two-month special training course in Hungary, paid for by the Sri Lankan National Olympic Committee to give their star further exposure to top-level international athletes and competitions.
Nethmi Ahinsa Poruthotage in action at the 2021 Junior World Championships in Russia.
Making history for Sri Lankan wrestling
The extra training meant Poruthotage arrived at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham full of confidence and determined to repay the faith of her closest supporters.
As she walked into the ring for the first time, the wrestler couldn't help but think of the loans her family took out, and the gold jewellery her coach and sister pawned to buy a pair of boots for her to make the trip.
After losing to Indian superstar and 2021 world silver medallist Anshu Malik in a spirited display, the Sri Lankan went into the third-place play-off against Australia’s Irene Symeonidis as the underdog.
Olympic champion Susaki Yui is Poruthotage's inspiration in the sport and Kumara challenged his pupil to attack from the start of the bout like her Japanese hero. She had to prove she belonged at this level.
The 18-year-old did just that, delivering a perfect performance to win 10-0 by technical superiority to secure the 57kg bronze medal and become the youngest Sri Lankan athlete ever to win a Commonwealth medal - and the first in wrestling.
Despite the headlines that came her way, Poruthotage emphasised that it was not an individual accomplishment.
“It was a huge achievement because we succeeded without access to elite training facilities or foreign training camps. I am very happy to bring honour to my country,” she said.
“My medal is thanks to my coach, who has dedicated himself to my wrestling career, even though that has meant he had to live more modestly.
"But it was worth it. Now we are seeing rewards for our work, not only in my career but with more children in Sri Lanka learning about wrestling and participating.”
Sri Lankan wrestler Nethmi Ahinsa Poruthotage celebrates with her bronze medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Poruthotage’s story gained significant attention back home, with several businesses wanting to support her career.
This included a Sri Lankan television channel, which offered to build the wrestler and her family a new house in Kurunegala and provide a monthly allowance to cover her training and nutritional needs.
The same company also committed to building a new wrestling training centre and rewarding Coach Kumara for his efforts by paying for his official coaching qualifications.
Nethmi Poruthotage takes part in a training session on the beach in Sri Lanka before a scholarship gave her an opportunity to train in elite facilities.
A "Dangal" story, but this is no movie
Poruthotage’s journey is in many ways, a real-life “Dangal” story - one of Bollywood’s highest-grossing sports films ever.
The movie was released in 2016, depicting Mahavir Phogat’s sacrifice to train his daughters, Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari, for the Commonwealth Games.
But that's where the comparisons end.
Poruthotage is not interested in being celebrated on the big screen. Her goals are simple: to compete at the Olympic Games, and to inspire people from humble backgrounds to also pursue their dreams.
“My coach neglected his own life in order to teach me this sport. But this is not a movie, we are living this moment," Poruthotage said.
“With my success, many young children in Sri Lanka have started to participate in wrestling and the sport is developing a lot. I hope to provide an example of where hard work and dedication can take you.
"I hope to win more medals and prove that with hard work, anyone can turn their life around."