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MaltaToday 14 May 2025

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6 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 14 MAY 2025 NEWS Malta's top judokas barred from GSSE in Andorra after late technical decision No judo representation for Malta at Games of the Small States of Europe for first time in history MALTA'S two top athletes, James Zahra and Katryna Esposito, have been barred from competing at the 2025 Games of the Small States of Europe (GSSE) in Andorra, following a controversial last-minute decision during a technical meeting that led to the cancellation of their weight categories. This marks the first time Malta will have no judo representation at the GSSE, despite Zahra and Esposito being among the top judokas in their catego- ries internationally and strong contend- ers for medals. Zahra, currently ranked 73rd in the world in the -60kg category, and Espos- ito, ranked 77th in the -48kg division, had recently brought home major in- ternational success. Zahra won gold at the European Small Nations Champi- onships and followed it with a bronze at the World Judo Tour in Perth, defeating the UAE champion in just 12 seconds. Esposito claimed silver in Algiers and previously made history for Malta by se- curing the country's only judo medal at the Commonwealth Games. Their exclusion comes after irregular changes were permitted during the final GSSE technical meeting, where errors in entry submissions by two Nation- al Olympic Committees (NOCs) were corrected after the official deadline. To comply with participation limits, those NOCs were allowed to withdraw ath- letes at the meeting and chose to remove their entries from Zahra's and Esposi- to's categories. This led to the complete cancellation of both the -60kg and -48kg divisions, which no longer met the min- imum participation criteria. Under GSSE judo rules, events require at least five athletes from three coun- tries per category. The Malta Judo Fed- eration stressed that both weight classes had met the criteria at the time of offi- cial entry and strongly condemned the retrospective changes. "The Malta Judo Federation strongly believes that categories validated at the start of the technical meeting should have been protected. Unfortunately, the decision was upheld, denying two of Malta's elite athletes the opportunity to compete on a prominent internation- al stage," the federation said in a state- ment. Despite the setback, both athletes have received official confirmation of their qualification for the upcoming World Judo Championships in Budapest this June, based on their global top-100 rankings. The federation added that Malta's emerging judo team continues to grow under the leadership of Italian coach Francesco Aiello, and reaffirmed its commitment to supporting its athletes and promoting the sport nationally and internationally. The GSSE, held every two years, brings together athletes from Europe's smallest nations and has long been an important event for Malta's sporting community. Katryna Esposito (blue) during the Commonwealth Games in 2022. She is one of the athletes who has been barred from the 2025 GSSE (Photo: Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images) NICOLE MEILAK nmeilak@mediatoday.com.mt MATTHEW FARRUGIA mfarrugia@mediatoday.com.mt PN slams reinstatement of indicted Permanent Secretary THE Nationalist Party has slammed Prime Minister Robert Abela's decision to reap- point Ronald Mizzi as a Permanent Secre- tary, calling it "irresponsible" and damag- ing to public trust in institutions. On Monday, Abela announced that he reinstated Mizzi as Permanent Secretary. Mizzi resigned from his post after he was indicted in connection to the Vitals hos- pital scandal in July 2024. Proceedings against him in court are still ongoing. In a statement, the PN said Mizzi is cur- rently facing serious criminal charges in connection with the fraudulent Steward concession case, and that his reappoint- ment undermines the principles of ac- countability and transparency. The opposition argued that the decision shows a continuation of the "culture of im- punity." The PN noted that many government workers are suspended from their du- ties when charged in court, regardless of whether the charges are related to their role, while Mizzi is being allowed to return to a senior post. The party further claimed that the reap- pointment could be seen as interference in an ongoing judicial process, stating that the decision gives the impression of a pre- mature declaration of Mizzi's innocence. "Only the courts have the authority to de- termine guilt or innocence," the statement read. Ronald Mizzi was indicted in July 2024 The Nationalist Party says that Ronald Mizzi's reappointment undermines the principles of accountability and transparency

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