Netball
Standing at seven feet tall, Tharjini Sivalingam is used to being stared at.
She sleeps diagonally, dodges ceiling fans, and has endured cruelty and war, but found hero status in netball.
The 43-year-old Sri Lankan grew up in a tiny rural village in the Jaffna District and is the fifth of six siblings who are all 25cm shorter, at least.
Following a two-year Covid hiatus Sivalingam now plays for City West Falcons’ Division One team, and for St Albans in the Geelong Football-Netball League.
Before stardom, Sivalingam endured bullying throughout her childhood, making her self-conscious and almost mute.
Tharjini Sivalingam
Fast forward to her debut in 2017 and the seven-foot netballer is not just remarkable, but remarkably hard to defend.
Though Sivalingam's height is a tremendous asset on court, she is unequivocal about the world’s tallest netballer title.
Sivalingam was named Sri Lanka’s 2019 Most Popular Sportsperson of the Year and is nevertheless all about onwards and not just about up.
The thought behind sport