COLOMBO Controversial Sri Lankan sprinter Susanthika Jayasinghe has fled to the United States amid mounting condemnation of her last-minute withdrawal from the Asian Games, press reports and family friends said Sunday. Jayasinghe, the world 200m silver medalist who is at the center of a doping inquiry, telephoned the Sunday Leader newspaper from Colombo Airport just before leaving on Friday, the newspaper said.

It said she did not want her destination disclosed for fear of harassment by Sri Lankan officials. However, family friends said she was headed for the United States for training and hoped to return in July to qualify for a championship around that time. The Leader newspaper quoted her as saying that she was hoping to train abroad and had already received offers from three coaches to prepare for the Sydney Olympics. She is considered a medal hopeful.

I love my country and her people and will not let them down because of the harassment I had to face at the hands of a powerful person, Jayasinghe was quoted as saying. Earlier reports said she was struggling to make ends meet after being ditched by sponsors because of her various troubles. But she insisted: I will never be allowed to realize my full potential in Sri Lanka because the authorities will be constantly putting road blocks my way.

Therefore I am reluctantly compelled to leave. Jayasinghe withdrew from the Bangkok Asian Games last month saying that she wrenched a hamstring in the 100m semifinals. Sri Lankan officials were clearly unhappy with the withdrawal. Sri Lankan disappointment was partly eased when Damayanthi Dharsha took the gold in Jayasinghe's main 200m event and the 400m. She has now replaced Jayasinghe as Sri Lanka's new athletics queen.

The Island newspaper speculated before Christmas that Jayasinghe, 23, was planning to go to Australia or Europe because she felt harassed by local officials. (AFP)