The National Athletics Championships, hosted by Athletics Malta at the Marsa Athletics Track, provided the much-anticipated climax to Malta’s track and field season, over the last week.
With 164 athletes competing across three packed days of action, the championships delivered a showcase of strong performances and exciting head-to-head battles featuring both established names and emerging talent.
Beppe Grillo reaffirmed his dominance in Maltese sprinting with a commanding win in the men’s 100m final. The Pembroke athlete clocked an impressive 10.47s, holding off strong challenges from Omar El Aida Chaffey of Żurrieq (10.53s) and Luke Bezzina (11.00s).
In the women’s 100m, 17-year-old Thea Parnis Coleiro (Rush AC) stole the show with a breakthrough performance, setting a new Under-18 Championship record of 11.83s. She edged out Pembroke’s Claire Azzopardi (11.95s) and Alessia Cristina (12.38s) in a thrilling final. Parnis Coleiro went on to claim a sprint double, winning the 200m in 24.33s.
La Salle’s Matthew Galea Soler continued his strong season, securing two golds, winning the 200m in 21.75s and the 400m in 47.63s.
Middle-distance star Gina McNamara also bagged a double gold, dominating both the 800m and 1500m. She set a Championship Record of 2:05.41 in the 800m and followed up with a strong 4:33.29 finish in the 1500m.
In the 800m men, youngster Isaac Bonnici (Rush) took top honours among an experienced start-list, clocking 1:53.78.
Dillon Cassar (Mellieħa AC) extended his winning streak in the 5000m, claiming his sixth consecutive title in 14:56.92. He also added the 1500m to his haul, winning in 3:58.64.
In the 3000m steeplechase, Luke Micallef took the title in 9:12.77. However, it was Thomas Grech (La Salle) who made history, finishing second in 10:16.48 to set new Under-20 and Under-23 Championship records.
In the jumps, Rachela Pace capped off a stellar season with victories in both the long jump and triple jump, setting a Championship Record of 12.93m in the latter. Among the men, Romeo Flavio won the long jump, while Ian Paul Grech claimed the triple jump title.
Bradley Mifsud delivered a dominant performance in the throws, taking gold in the discus, shot put, and javelin.
The hammer throw saw a remarkable performance from 17-year-old Bianca Shoemake (Rush AC), whose 52.20m throw not only set a new Under-18 national record but also came just shy of the senior record using a 4kg implement. Among the men, Kareem Luca Chouhal secured top honours with a 50.61m throw.