Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1076517
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 30 JANUARY 2019 21 Numerous records broken in first MWA event for 2019 THE first ranking and qualifica- tion event for 2019 for the Maltese Weightlifting Association saw an- other incredible day of lifting at the Cottonera Sports Complex. With a new venue and a new professional elevated competition platform, the weekend provided many high- lights. The meet saw many new faces participating for the first time as well as some well-known athletes who are back on the platform ready to prove themselves as they prepare for another year of lifting. In a hugely entertaining wom- en's group, Yazmin Zammit Stevens broke the first senior national record of 2019 and in the newly-established weightlift- ing categories. Zammit Stevens finished the competition in a routine 83kg snatch and 95kg clean and jerk, breaking five na- tional records in the process. Even though the team is yet to be announced, she is the favourite from the women's group to make part of the European Small Na- tions team which will take place in a few months here in Malta. More importantly, she has quali- fied for the next qualifier event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the European Championships in Georgia this April. U-15 youth athlete, Tenishia Thornthon, wowed the audience as she finished with eight national records in both the youth U-15 and U-17 age categories at only 13 years of age. She lifted a snatch of 45kg and a clean and jerk of 60kg weighing in at 44kg body- weight. Another youth athlete, 15 year old Shelby Mangion Vassal- lo lifted two national records with her 61kg snatch and 134kg total. The youngest athlete of the en- tire competition at only 11 years old, Kim Camilleri Lagana, com- peted like a professional at this meet, and also managed to set some new cadet national records in the process. The men's groups also provided many highlights, with an inter- esting shake-up in the ranking of the athletes from 2018. This will prove to be crucial for the selec- tion of athletes for the upcoming European Small Nations coming up this March. By far the biggest surprise came from veteran ath- lete, Anton Micallef. He weighed in at a lower bodyweight from the usual, and finished with a personal best sinclair point result. Micallef lifted a 104kg snatch and 128kg clean and jerk, break two national records. Shaun Ciantar, Matthew Camilleri and Martin Pisani also had respectable results on the day, finishing with comfortable lifts to register their first results for the year. The best results came from senior athlete Vlad Baldacchino and youth athlete Rylee Borg. 12-year-old Rylee, who attends the National School of Sports, finished with 52kg snatch and 63kg clean and jerk, both being lifetime personal best lifts for him. Baldacchino managed to break four national records as he lifted 120kg snatch and 140kg clean and jerk. The new platform used on the day was a huge investment project by the MWA and Sport- Malta. This new stage is the type of platform you would see be- ing used in major international events. The huge investment done on this platform will prove to be an important one as the MWA will hope to start organis- ing more and more international competitions on our island, not only of a small scale but also some major championships too. The European Small Nations in March will be testing out the stage for the first time for an in- ternational event. More details regarding time table and dates of the event will be published closed to the date, however the MWA already encourage the Maltese public to keep the weekend between 23rd and 25th of March free to come and give maximum support to the Mal- tese National team competing on the day. THE 2019 Trustmoore Cross Country National Points Series kicked off in Miżieb in a race fraught with falls and technical issues which saw quite a few riders retiring. Maurice Formosa (The Cy- clist), 2018 Mountain Bike Champion, nearly sealed his first victory for the 2019 sea- son when he led the way for most of the race until a flat tyre in the fourth lap sealed his fate causing him to retire. For- mosa's retirement paved the way for Etienne Bonello (Team Greens) to seal his first win of the season. Nevertheless, Bonello's win was deserved es- pecially due to his determined performance throughout. Ris- ing star Brandon Sultana (Go- zo C.C.) also gave a strong per- formance to finish in second place, twenty seven seconds behind Bonello. Completing the podium was evergreen rider Patrick Scicluna who was racing in his new colours for FRM Racing Team Sicilia. In the younger categories Clyve Chetcuti (Mosta AF Sign Studio) won the Junior Catego- ry. In the 40+ Category Mario Attard (Team Greens) pipped Paul Zarb (The Cyclist) to the top post whilst Enrico Branda- mante (Agones SFC) claimed the 50+ category. The Ladies category was a two horse race between cur- rent champion Marie Claire Aquilina (Team Greens) and relative newcomer Fiona Dar- manin Tedesco (Mosta AF Sign Studio) who has become a regular fixture on the Moun- tain bike scene. In the Sports Category Den- nis Dolci (Agones SFC) domi- nated throughout most of the four laps sealing his first win in this category. Second was Alex Portelli (BRC Gasan Mamo) and in third was Jorgen Palsson (Team Greens) – the latter two claiming their first podium on the circuit. The Association also hosted a shortened course for Under 15 and Under 12 cyclists to give them the opportunity to expe- rience mountain bike events. The newly-launched E-Bike Category generated a lot of in- terest. The riders taking part in this category gave some strong performances however it was Robert Magro who dominated the class from start to finish, winning the four lap course in a time of 47 minutes 34 sec- onds. Behind him in second and third place, respectively were John Micallef and Jona- than Falzon. "The season opener was an exciting curtain raiser for the year – despite quite a few retir- ing due to technical issues, also due to the technical nature of the course, one could see such determination in each and eve- ry category. We are pleased to see the high level of interest in the new e-bikes category and riders here gave some impres- sive performances. Participa- tion in the Ladies category was disappointing especially since we know there are quite a few enthusiastic female mountain bikers out there – we hope to see more in the next race." said Pierre Zammit Endrich, Presi- dent, Malta Mountain Bike As- sociation. The Trustmoore Cross Coun- try National Points Series is sponsored by Trustmoore Cor- porate Services and supported by Magri Cycles, Maypole, Go & Fun, H20nly and Jimmy Vel- la Fruit and Vegetables. The second race of the Trust- moore Cross Country Nation- al Points Series is scheduled to take place on Sunday 3rd March in Selmun. For more information please visit http://www.maltamoun- tainbike.org.mt/2019.html Mountain bike season opener sees Etienne Bonello and Marie Claire Aquilina win their first races SPORTS WEIGHTLIFTING MOUNTAIN BIKING Yazmine Zammit Stevens