Dr. Upali Mahanama, a former president of the Association of Cricket Umpires Sri Lanka (ACUSL) and father of former Sri Lanka cricket captain and ICC Match Referee Roshan Mahanama passed away at his residence at Nugegoda yesterday four days before his 77th birthday which falls on Sunday.
Upali has been ailing for some time fighting the dreaded disease of prostate cancer for the past five years. He breathed his last in the early hours of yesterday with his family – wife Swarna and sons Devaka and Roshan by his side.
Upali was a man of many parts and there was nothing he had not achieved in life, which he lived to the full.
He was a recognized sportsman and sports administrator, having captained Bloomfield C & AC in the Daily News Trophy and being a member of the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka, President of the ACUSL and President of the prestigious Mercantile Cricket Association.
Upali played for Nalanda College in 1959 under the captaincy of Sarath Silva and was followed by his two sons Devaka who played in 1978-79 and Roshan from 1983-85.
Apart from his sports achievement Upali excelled in many other fields. His professional career that spanned over four decades was studded with distinction. He commenced his career in 1964 as a salesman at Unilever Sri Lanka and rose to the position of Brand Manager. In 1975, he was Head of Marketing at Warner Hudnut and in 1979 the Imports Director of Mackwoods Limited. His work and interests took him to over 40 countries in five continents. This exposure, he once confessed, helped him to be an international Marketing Consultant and Trainer. He trained thousands of managers in over 20 countries and led many marketing teams. He was a CEO, Managing Director, Trainer and Marketing Consultant. Upali was a Founder Member of the Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing and presented many Research Papers at International forums in Bangladesh, Singapore and India. In 1999 he was approved by the United Nations to train UNHCR personnel in selected countries in Asia.
The Phoenix International University conferred a Doctorate in Business Administration on Upali. He was also conferred an Honorary Fellowship of the Society of Business Practitioners UK and Membership of the New Zealand Institute of Management.
Upali was very proud of his two cricketing sons - Devaka who played as a professional in Australia and Roshan, a past captain of Sri Lanka and former ICC Match Referee.
Upali’s remains will be taken to 100/2, Rosmead Place, Colombo 7 today at 10 am. His funeral will also take place today at the General Cemetery, Borella at 5 pm. - ST
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