18th February 2023 14:03:40 Hours
Smartly-lined up more than 300 of tri-service members joined the ‘Conseil International du Sport Militaire’ (CISM) run on Saturday (18) to mark the World Military Day of the CISM after assembling at Air Force ground in Colombo, headed by General Kamal Gunaratne (Retd), Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, Chief of Defence Staff, Army, Navy and Air Force Commanders and tri service Senior Officers.
This year's CISM run which began at Air Force ground covered a distance of about 4 km before it ended near the same location. One hundred personnel from each service, Army, Navy and Air Force, led by respective tri-service Commanders adds special significance every year and symbolizes the international recognition of sports capabilities of the Armed Forces in Sri Lanka.
This year's event, organized by the Sri Lanka Air Force saw each participant receiving a certificate. The Commander of the Army was also associated with the distribution of certificates.
The International Military Sports Council founded on the 18th of February 1948 in Nice, France is one of the largest multidisciplinary organizations in the world. CISM organize various sporting events for the armed forces of its 140 member countries and is one of the global sports organizations, in which the largest number of disciplines is represented. Soldiers, who may previously have met on the battlefield, now meet in friendship on the sports playing field. This is in accordance with the philosophy and the ideals which were set in CISM’s mission statement in 1998, signed by all the member countries.
The vision of the CISM endorses friendship amongst soldiers and the CISM is the worldwide international military sport organization devoted to bringing together armed forces personnel from all nations through sports activities, thus enabling the physical training, military readiness and education for the armed forces. The CISM's General Secretariat is located in Brussels.
