| Niluka Karunaratne | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Karunaratne at the 2012 Summer Olympics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 13 February 1985 Galle, Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 65 kg (143 lb) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Handedness | Right | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | Louie Karunaratne | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Men's singles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 34 (27 June 2013) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current ranking | 164 (22 November 2022) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| BWF profile | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Niluka Karunaratne (Sinhala: නිලූක කරුණාරත්න; Tamil: நிலுக கருணாரத்ன) (born 13 February 1985) is a Sri Lankan badminton player who has competed at the Olympics in 2012, 2016 and 2020.[1] His father Louie Karunaratne and brothers Dinuka Karunaratne, Chamika Karunaratne (also a cricketer)[2] and Diluka Karunaratne are also professional badminton players.[3][4] He is currently regarded as the number one premiere badminton player in Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka's most decorated badminton player with a record 21 medals to his name at international events including 9 gold medals.[5] He also holds the unique distinction of winning five gold medals in five different continents.[6] He reached his higher career singles ranking of 34 in June 2013, which is also the personal best ranking by a Sri Lankan badminton player. He has also emerged as national badminton champion for record 17 times, the most by a Sri Lankan badminton player.[7][8] Despite his achievements in the sport, he was also sidelined for disciplinary issues on few occasions.[9]
- ^ "Niluka KARUNARATNE - Olympic Badminton | Sri Lanka". International Olympic Committee. 20 November 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2017.
- ^ Acharya, Shayan (19 July 2021). "A busy sporting season for the Karunaratnes from Sri Lanka". Sportstar. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
- ^ Rajendran, Angu (1 February 2011). "Dinuka - Sri Lanka's champion shuttler". dailynews.lk. Daily News. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Making of an extraordinary shuttle talent". Print Edition - The Sunday Times, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ "Karunaratne determined to raise the bar high for badminton in Sri Lanka". Daily News. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Caffoor, Inshaf (31 October 2016). "Niluka Karunaratne undisputed National Champion for 16th consecutive year". ThePapare.com. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ "Niluka defends his national title | The Sunday Times Sri Lanka". Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ "The shuttlecock's stuck in the racket | The Sunday Times Sri Lanka". Retrieved 14 June 2021.