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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 30 APRIL 2017 53 SNOOKER TENNIS OLYMPICS Sport Alex Borg wins fourth ranking snooker tournament of the season ALEX Borg, who plays for club Juventutis Domus of Zejtun, won the fourth and last snooker tournament of the season following a 5-1 win over Mario Brincat who play for Mount Carmel club. Borg won the first frame but Brincat equalised by winning the second one. However, Borg won the con- secutive four frames for a final score of 5-1. In the last frame, Borg registered the highest break which was of 79 points. The final match was con- trolled by referee Ivan Pirot- ta. After the final, Mr Vince Pisani presented the awards to both finalists on behalf of the MBSA. Borg sits first in the rank- ing list of the Malta Billiards and Snoooker Association. He is followed by Duncan Bezzina and Brian Cini. New Executive Board of Directors for Maltese Olympic Committee FOLLOWING the recently held Elective Council Meeting, the Maltese Olympic Committee an- nounced the formation of a new Executive Board of Directors The Maltese Olympic Commit- tee's new Executive Board of Di- rectors is made up of the following members: Julian Pace Bonello – President, liaison with Government and Sport Malta William Beck – Vice President Joseph Cassar – Secretary General David Azzopardi – Director of Finance, Chair Sport for all Com- mission Ivan Balzan - Director of Sport Whilst the above are expected to hold office for a four year tenure, the following directors are expect- ed to retain their posts for a period of two years as per current Statu- tory requirements. Charlene Attard – Chair Athletes Commission, Olympic Academy Dr. Lucienne Attard – Chair Anti- Doping Commission, Chair Women in Sport Dr. Marie Therese Cuschieri – Olympic Solidarity, EU Funding Mario Micallef - Technical Com- mission Dr. Kirill Micallef Stafrace - Chair Medical Commission Paul Sultana – Chair Youth Com- mission Jonathan Vella – Chair Market- ing Commission Maria Vella-Galea - Director Me- dia and Public Relations The Maltese Olympic Commit- tee welcomes new blood to the team. Although these are in their first foray within the Maltese Olympic Committee, they are ex- pected to bring a wealth of expe- rience in sports administration. This complements the capability and know-how that existing board members have garnered through- out their years on the Committee. Whilst expressing his concern at the fact that this year's election did not present the usual amount of candidates coming forward for election, the Maltese Olympic Committee's President, Julian Pace Bonello conveyed his belief in the setup of the new Committee and is confident that it will combine the energy and experience required to lead the Maltese sports govern- ing body. "We hope to further strengthen our relationships with associated federations and help combat the seeming drain on ad- ministrators coming forward to contribute their expertise towards the development of sports. We do welcome and encourage an open discussion by all stakeholders", continued Pace Bonello. The Committee's main and im- mediate focus will be the forth- coming Games of the Small States of Europe which will take place be- tween the 29th May and 5th June in San Marino. Team Malta will be fielding approximately 120 athletes and preparations are well at an ad- vanced stage. The final list of athletes will be announced at a press conference scheduled to take place at the Mal- tese Olympic Committee's Head- quarters prior to the Games. Gutsy Mladenovic ends Sharapova comeback at Stuttgart FORMER world number one Maria Sharapova crashed out of the Stuttgart Grand Prix semi- final in her first event back after a 15-month doping suspension, losing to France's Kristina Mlad- enovic 3-6 7-5 6-4 on Saturday. Wildcard entrant Sharapova, a five-time grand-slam winner, squandered a 6-3 2-0 lead as Mladenovic clawed her way back into the game to win after two hours and 38 minutes. Sharapova had not lost a set in the previous three matches of her comeback this week. Her defeat means she will fin- ish outside the top 200 when the rankings are released on Mon- day, ruling out a qualifier spot for the French Open. Sharapova, who was banned for using meldonium after test- ing positive at the 2016 Aus- tralian Open, has also received wildcards for forthcoming tour- naments in Madrid and Rome. The Russian was in com- plete control at the start, with her French opponent showing nerves, and a second double fault allowed Sharapova to race 4-1 clear. She sealed the first set when Mladenovic sent a crosscourt backhand into the net after just 38 minutes. The Russian, a three-time champion in Stuttgart, broke Mladenovic again at the start of the second set and looked to be cruising to victory as she took a 2-0 lead, attacking her oppo- nent's second serve. But despite conceding 11 double faults, Mladenovic im- proved her baseline game, chas- ing Sharapova with powerful ground strokes across the court. She almost paid the price for her weak second serve -- a li- ability throughout the match -- but Mladenovic survived three break points to move into a 6-5 lead. She took the set when Shara- pova sent a forehand wide on Mladenovic's first break oppor- tunity. The pair traded blows early in the third before the French- woman grabbed a break to go 4-2 up. The 23-year-old world number 18 stood her ground when she found herself 0-40 in the next game, moving to 5-2, but a dis- astrous service game allowed the Russian brief ly to come back before Mladenovic completed a memorable win to reach her first Stuttgart final with anoth- er break. Maria Sharapova