This year’s EAP Malta international WACT Challenger Meeting organised by Pembroke Athleta and held on Saturday 1st June 2024 at the Marsa Track, was another record breaking event with no less than 7 Meeting Senior Records, 2 Meeting Youth Records and a local U18 National Record being established.
A record representation of 40 different countries from across the world were represented in this fifth edition of the EAP Malta International with the meeting also reaching new heights in the World Athletics Coopetition Ranking Performance Classification.
Among the most known foreign athletes that competed in this meet was Italian triple jumper and 2022 European Championships silver medalist ANDREA DALLAVELLE, who lived up to the expectations and won the event with a 16.53m mark to set a New Meeting Record in this event.
However, the Best Male Technical Performance came from HACHIM MAROUFOU of the Comoros, with another New Meeting Record of 20.57s in the Men’s 200m.
The Best Female Technical Performance was registered by Six-time Serbian champion ANYA LUKIC who did not disappoint the sizeable crowd that gathered at the Marsa Track, crossing the line first in the 100m hurdles race in 13.34s for yet another Meeting Record.
Other New Meeting records came from Puerto Rico’s three-times Long Jump National Champion ALYSBETH FELIX, winning the long jump female event with a mark of 6.35m. Lebanon’s six-times 100m National Champion NOUREDDINE HADID who won in an extremely close race with a time of 10.45s, 21 year-old KEENAN BLAKE from the Netherlands set a new Meeting Mark of 46.65s in the Men’s 400m and South Africa’s LEROUX HAMMAN finishing on a time of 50.29s to establish a New Meeting Record in the Men’s 400mH.
Local athlete THEA PARNIS COLEIRO broke a long-standing U-18 national record in the 100m a 12.09s win in her heat.
The 2 Junior Meeting Records are credited to KRISTINA AZZOPARDI {Pembroke. Ath), winning the U16 100m in 12.43s and CARL ZAMMIT BONDIN (Zurrieq W) winning on the male’s same distance in 11.59s
Three sprinters managed to clinch two medals each with Argentine’s Maria Florencia Lamboglia winning Gold in the 200m and Silver on the shorter distance, Noureddine Hadid won Gold in the 100m and Silver in the 200m, while Hachim Maroufou won the 200m Gold and Silver in the 100m.
The best from the local athletes came from JEAN PAUL DEPONO (Zurrieq W). JULIAN ZARB (La Salle) and MIREYA BUGEJA (Zurrieq W), all winning Gold in the 1500m and 800m respectively, CARLA SCICLUNA, {Pembroke. Ath), SANA GRILLO {Pembroke. Ath), ISAAC BONNICI (Rush AC), SEAN GALEA (Evolve EC) and MICHELA CARUANA (Zurrieq W) claiming a silver medal, and MICHAEL DEBATTISTA SEGOND {Pembroke. Ath), KAY TESTA {Pembroke. Ath), REBECCA SARE’ {Pembroke. Ath), HANNAH VELLA {Pembroke. Ath), DANIEL SALIBA {Pembroke. Ath), and DARIO MANGION {Pembroke. Ath), all winning a Bronze Medal
This edition saw a record participation of over 260 athletes and coaches, a record, including more than 120 Maltese athletes.
Pembroke Athleta who are Members of the EAP Circuit will host the next EAP Annual Convention which will be held in November this year.
