Malta Olympic Committee

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2019 GSSE Press Conference

2019 GSSE Press Conference

The Maltese Olympic Committee cordially invites you to a Media Conference in relation to the forthcoming Games of the Small States of Europe, which will take place in Montenegro between the 27th May and 1st June.

During the press conference, members of the Maltese Olympic Committee will address those present and will provide details of the latest updates, the delegation representing Malta as well as the announcement of the Flag Bearer for the Opening Ceremony.

Date: Thursday 2nd May, 2017

Time: 11:30 hrs.

Location: Maltese Olympic Committee Head Quarters, National Swimming Pool Complex, Maria Teresa Spinelli Street, Gzira

The Media will be addressed by:

Mr. Julian Pace Bonello – President ,Maltese Olympic Committee

Mr. Ivan Balzan – Director of Sports, Maltese Olympic Committee

Mr. Paul Sultana – Director, Maltese Olympic Committee and GSSE 2019 Chef de Mission

Ms. Maria Vella-Galea – Director of Media, Maltese Olympic Committee

_________________________________________________

· In attendance will be a number of athletes forming part of Team Malta.

· Your attendance, together with any member of your media team would be greatly appreciated.

· Refreshments will be served at the end of the conference.

· Any media queries are to be directed to Ms. Maria Vella-Galea, Director of Media & Public Relations on 9981 2345 or media@nocmalta.org

By nocmalta|April 25th, 2019|Events, News|Comments Off|

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Team Malta at Comité d’Organisation des Jeux des Iles (COJI)

Team Malta at Comité d’Organisation des Jeux des Iles (COJI)

The 22nd Edition of the of the Comité d’Organisation des Jeux des Iles (COJI) will take place this week in Catania Sicily, between the 23rd and 27th May.

Maltese athletes, aged between 14 and 16 years of age will be competing in a field of over 1,000 athletes. Team Malta is made up of thirty six athletes and fourteen officials. Athletes will be competing in Athletics, Gymnastics, Karate, Table Tennis, Sailing and Swimming.

The islands being represented at these Games are the Azores, Balearic Islands, Corfù, Corsica, Elba, Guyana, Jersey, Madeira, Malta, Martinique, Sicily and Sardegna.

First competitions are expected to take place on Wednesday 22nd May with athletics, table tennis and sailing taking the field.

Athletics: Daniel Borg Ferrando, Suzanne Buttigieg, Mireya Cassar, Kyle Caruana, Sarah Chouhal, Alessia Cristina, Jacob El Aida Chaffey, Omar El Aida Chaffey, Jake Gauci, Beppe Grillo, Rachela Pace, Kyle Spiteri, Mariah Zaheya, Kurt Zahra. Officials: Mark Farrugia, Antonella Chouhal.

Gymnastics: Ella Borg, Julia Micallef, Mirae Micallef, Rebecca Xuereb. Officials: Roberto De Santis, Nataliya Berehova, Tiziana Caruana, Jeanette Brown.

Karate: Joelle Farrugia, Sean Micallef. Official: Joseph Mizzi

Table Tennis: Anthea Cutajar, Conrad Puli, James Vella Vidal, May Zahra. Official: Johanna Grech

Sailing: Richard Shultheis, Saul Vassallo. Officials: Florian Trittel, Anna Rossi

Swimming: Michele Azzopardi, Andre Camilleri, Maya Galea, Sasha Gatt, Emily Grech Carr, Timothy Hansford, Jovan Lekic, Victoria Montfort, Haley Pawley Neame, Luke Sullivan. Officials: Keith Bartolo, Grant Kritzinger, Catalin Stan.

The Opening Ceremony will take place on Wednesday 23rd May and flag bearer will be Richard Schultheis (Sailing).

The Contingent is being supported by physiotherapist Karl Rizzo Naudi and Masseur Joseph Buttigieg, whilst Chef de Mission duties are entrusted to Maltese Olympic Committee Director of Media, Maria Vella-Galea.

For more information about the Comité d’Organisation des Jeux des Iles please [...]

By nocmalta|May 22nd, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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Mental Health in Sport: Let’s Talk about it

Mental Health in Sport: Let’s Talk about it

On Monday 4th & Tuesday 5th June 2018, the Maltese Olympic Committee in collaboration with Olympic Solidarity will be hosting their annual medical conference. This year’s event will be exploring the contemporary issue of mental health in sport. This conference seeks to raise awareness of mental health issues in sport and explore contemporary research in the field and strategies to support athletes.

Confirmed speakers:

Dr David Fletcher – Loughborough University, UK

Graziella Thake – The Optimisation Hub, Australia

Dr Nigel Camilleri, University of Malta

Dr Danica Bonello Spiteri, University of Malta

Dr Adele Muscat, National Sports School, Malta

Registration is mandatory but free until 31st May.

Following this date, Conference fees, including refreshments and lunches are just €35, whilst a day fee will be charged at €25.

Conference starts at 9am and is expected to finish by 16:30hrs.

For more information please contact: Dawn Aquilina – dawnaquilina@nocmalta.org

By nocmalta|May 5th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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Brian Galea lands Bronze Medal in Trap Competition in the Commonwealth Games

Brian Galea lands Bronze Medal in Trap Competition in the Commonwealth Games

Shooter Brian Galea delivered a remarkable performance at this morning’s trap competition, to secure his place on the podium and take home another Bronze Medal for Malta

With qualifications spread over two days, Galea confirmed his potential when he shot 48 from 50 clays. The going got tougher on day two of qualification when in the final three rounds of qualification he finished with a combined score of 117, leaving him in the sixth place, tied, with Kynan Chenai of India.

It was a nail biting situation at Belmont Shooting Range when a shoot off between him and Chenai was to decide if Galea was to be the final shooter to take his place in the final round. With great concentration, Galea managed to edge out Chenai with a score of 4-3.

Galea’s performance in the final round was nothing short of impressive when he hit 36 clays and securing his first medal in the Commonwealth Games.

“This was such a fitting way to wrap up the Commonwealth Games. Malta is very happy with this result, which shows the dedication and commitment that athletes like Brian Galea give towards their sport” enthused Julian Pace Bonello, President, Maltese Olympic Committee.

“Today is a truly emotional moment for me, as it is the result of months of hard work and preparation. I am grateful for the support that the Shooting Federation and the Maltese Olympic Committee have given me as without it, I would not have achieved this result. I genuinely hope that I have made Malta proud with this result” – Brian Galea, Bronze Medalist, Commonwealth Games.

Malta’s commitments at the XXI Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast have now come to an end, all that remains is the closing ceremony [...]

By nocmalta|April 14th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC2018 – News Update – 12th April

GC2018 – News Update – 12th April

Squash Duo Hindle/Zammit-Lewis make it to top sixteen in the Gold Coast
As the XXI Commonwealth Games are slowly coming to an end, Maltese athletes today took part in wrestling and squash competitions.

Gary Giordimaina took the floor this morning, when he competed in the first rounds of the 57kgs competition. A strong draw against Muhammad Bilal resulted in a victory by technical superiority for Bilal, who went on to win a Bronze medal following his match with George Ramm (ENG).

There was more joy in the Squash Courts when Men’s Doubles pair Bradley Hindle and Daniel Zammit-Lewis won comfortably against St. Vincent and the Grenadines pair Jason Doyle and Jules Snaggs. This win saw the pair make it to the top sixteen, however a draw against English pair James Willstrop and Declan James put an end to their participation in the Games.

Mixed Doubles pair Dianne Kellas and Bradley Hindle, despite losing out in their last match, put up a good fight against England pair Alison Walters and Daryl Selby, currently ranked tenth in the world.

As the Games are now nearing the end, Team Malta’s commitments will see participation in shooting when Brian Galea will seek qualification for Trap Finals, whilst Adam Vella will hit the mats in the 65kg category in Wrestling. Finally on Saturday Maltese cycling duo David Treacy Schembri and Alex Smyth will undertake the 168km road race.

By nocmalta|April 13th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC2018 News Update – 11th April

GC2018 News Update – 11th April

Whilst there was no doubt in the commitment and determination to perform well by all Maltese athletes at the Commonwealth Games there was a degree of disappointment in the Gold Coast today, when Maltese athletes failed to secure places in final legs of competition.

In Lawn Bowls, bronze medal winning sisters Connie and Rebecca Rixon, had a strong win against Zambia, after having played closely until the tenth end. A determined push from the Rixons to secure a win saw their efforts play off when they won with a score of 24-12. It was a much closer call later on in the day, when they played against Papua New Guinea – with a comfortable advantage until the eleventh end, Papua New Guinea edged closer to Malta with Malta winning in a close call on the eighteenth and last end, with just one point ahead. Malta won 20-19. Despite their fine showing today, Malta previous three losses put an end to their commitments in the Women’s Pairs in these Games.

Further disappointment was suffered when Maltese shooters William Chetcuti and Nathan Lee Xuereb failed to secure place in the final in the double trap competition. Chetcuti, two-time bronze medalist in the Commonwealth Games, hit scores of 26, 25, 25, 26 and 28 to finish with an overall score 130 from 150, placing 9th in the 27 man competition.

Chetcuti finished just two points short of Aamer Iqbal, of Pakistan, who took the final qualifying spot. Xuereb, hit 24, 29, 24, 26 and 22 to garner 125 points that left him in 12th place.

Squash Women’s Doubles team Dianne Kellas and Colette Sultana had a convincing win against Pakistan’s Madina Zafar and Faiza Zafar, winning in two straight sets. Simultaneously Men’s Doubles [...]

By nocmalta|April 11th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC 2018 News Update – 10th April

GC 2018 News Update – 10th April

Another busy day for Team Malta in the Gold Coast today, when eleven athletes took part in Athletics, Shooting, Lawn Bowls and Squash.

Athletics

The searing heat that hit the Carrara Stadium did not deter Ian Grech’s efforts to register a new personal best result of 7.43 in the Men’s Long Jump Qualifying rounds.

Andrew Cassar Torregiani jumped 6.87 in his first major international competition.

Charlotte Wingfield took part in the 200m Heats, and clocked a time of 24.40.

Lawn Bowls

Maltese lawn bowlers, had a bit of a disappointing day at Broadbeach today, when the Ladies Pairs, siblings Connie-Leigh and Rebecca Rixon suffered two defeats against England and Australia. In the first match, England proved their strength by the eighth end, when the score was 14 – 2 for England. Despite valiant efforts England were too strong and the match ended 23 -10. In the game against host country Australia, the Maltese girls had a narrower defeat. Gaining the upper hand the girls had the lead until the sixteenth end, when Australia obtained and draw. Motivated by this, Australia went on to beat Malta 18 – 14.

In the Men’s Singles, Brandon Aquilina played a very close match against Daniel Salmon (Wales), however lost with a score of 21-18. but won over Philip Jones (Norfolk Islands) and Taiki Paniani (Cook Islands).

Shooting

Eleanor Bezzina gave another strong performance today in the 25m Pistol Precision and Rapid Qualification. Bezzina qualified to take part in the final after gaining seventh place with result of 571-18x. In the final competition, Bezzina missed out on Bronze medal for points. Nevertheless, this result is a strong one for Bezzina who only recently took up this particular discipline.

Squash

In Oxenford, it was time for Malta to take to the [...]

By nocmalta|April 10th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC 2018 – Historic win for Malta with Lawn Bowls Bronze Medal at Commonwealth Games

GC 2018 – Historic win for Malta with Lawn Bowls Bronze Medal at Commonwealth Games

Team Malta won its first medal of the 2018 Commonwealth Games after the women’s pairs team beat Canada 17-8 in the lawn bowls bronze medal play-off in Gold Coast on Monday.

This is an impressive achievement from the team formed of Sharon Callus, Rosemarie Rixon and her daughters Rebecca and Connie-Leigh Rixon, who have secured Malta’s its first ever medal in the sport at the Commonwealth Games.

Despite valiant efforts from Men’s Pair Brendan Aquilina and Shaun Parnis, the duo could not emulate their female counterparts when they lost to Cook Islands 17-11.

“The Maltese Olympic Committee is elated to see such result being achieved today – indeed it is a historic result since this is the first medal that Malta has won in the sport” a visibly thrilled Julian Pace Bonello, President of the Maltese Olympic Committee, explained immediately after the medal ceremony.

Team Malta has an intensive programme for Tuesday 10th April, when athletes will be taking part in athletics, lawn bowls, shooting and squash.

Athletics

Ian Grech – Men’s Long Jump Qualifying Round A

Andrew Cassar Torregiani – Men’s Long Jump Qualifying Round B

Charlotte Wingfield – Women’s 200m Round 1 – Heat 4

Lawn Bowls

Women’s Pairs Section D – Round 2 – Malta vs England

Men’s Singles Section D – Round 3 – Brendan Aquilina vs Daniel Salmon (Wales)

Women’s Pairs Section D – Round 2 – Malta vs – Australia

Men’s Singles Section D – Round 4 – Brendan Aquilina vs. Philip Jones (Norfolk)

Men’s Singles Section D – Round 5 – Brendan Aquilina vs Tani Paniani (Cook Islands)

Shooting

25m Precision Pistol – Eleanor Bezzina – Belmont Shooting Range

Squash

Ladies Doubles Pool C – (Dianne Kellas/Colette Sultana) vs. EVANS Tesni/SAFFERY Deon (Wales)

Mixed Doubles Pool G – (Colette Sultana / Daniel Zammit Lewis) vs. Amanda Landers Murphy / Zac Miller [...]

By nocmalta|April 9th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC2018 – 8th April News Update

GC2018 – 8th April News Update

Team Malta continued its commitments in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games today when it took part in Shooting, Athletics and Lawn Bowls.

Today saw the start of Shooting competitions with Marlon Attard taking part in day one of the skeet qualifying rounds, which will be spread over a period of two days. Attard scored a straight 25 and 24 in the first two rounds placing him in third place in the current classification. The next three rounds will take place tomorrow.

In the Women’s 10m Air Pistol Qualification round, Eleanor Bezzina gave a superb performance to finish in third place from a pool of 25 athletes and giving her a place in the final round.

Despite a strong performance, Bezzina had to settle for fourth place. Nevertheless, this performance is a great improvement from the 13th place she obtained in Glasgow in 2014. Bezzina will now compete in the Qualifying round of the Women’s 25m Pistol Precision on Wednesday 10th April.

Despite valiant efforts from the Lawn Bowls Team to make it to the final round of competition, today’s opponents proved to be very strong resulting in both the Women’s Fours and Men’s Pairs suffering defeats against South Africa and Scotland respectively. Malta’s hopes for a medal have not yet been completely dashed as the team will play for a Bronze Medal on Monday morning. Women’s Fours will play against Canada. whilst the Men’s Pairs will battle it out against Cook Islands. Later on in the day Brendan Aquilina will start his singles games commitments.

The last competition of the day was Athletics, when Charlotte Wingfield competed in the 100m Heats. Wingfield placed sixth out of seven athletes, with a time of 11.99, which ruled her out of further [...]

By nocmalta|April 8th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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GC2018 – DAY 3 News Update

GC2018 – DAY 3 News Update

Team Malta produces strong performances in third day of competition.

National Records for Zammit Stevens, Lawn Bowlers make it to semi-finals

Team Malta gave strong and positive performances today in Day 3 of the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

Yazmin Zammit Stevens, the only member of Team Malta who qualified for the Games on her own merit, set three new national records on her way to an overall score of 174kg, a new national record. Zammit Stevens placed seventh from sixteen lifters, producing an solid performance in snatch and registering record lifts of 77kgs and 79kgs in the process. Canada’s Maude Charron won the gold medal with a total of 220kg.

Maltese Lawn Bowls have raised hopes for the possibility of Malta winning a medal the games when the Women’s Fours and Men’s Pairs both went on to reach the semi-final stage after a nail biting performance from both events.

The quartet, made up of Sharon Callus, Rosemarie, Rebecca and Connie-Leigh Rixon kept Maltese supporters biting their nails until the very end in their game against India, which resulted in a close win 13-11. This was Malta’s second victory over India after beating them 20-15 in the group stage.

Malta will now face South Africa in Sunday’s semi-final after the latter beat New Zealand 16-8.

Despite being considered as underdogs having suffered a 22-11 defeat against Australian’s Brett Wilkie and Aaron Wilson in group stages, Brendan Aquilina and Shaun Parnis caused major upset in the lawn bowls pairs competition when they knocked out hosts Australia 15-13 out of the quarter finals and remain with hopes for a medal at the Commonwealth Games.

Battling against former world champion Wilkie and Australian Open Champion Wilson, Aquilina and Parnis kept their cool and went [...]

By nocmalta|April 8th, 2018|Events, News|Comments Off|

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