Malta secured its third medal at the European Youth Championships (EYC) in Turkey, as Kayden Lagana’ claimed a bronze in the prestigious Masters event.
The championships, which included singles, doubles, and team events, saw strong performances from Nicolai Mallia and Kayden Lagana’. Both bowlers finished in the top 16 overall, earning them a spot in the Masters — Nicolai placed 7th and Kayden 16th.
In Step 1 of the Masters, Nicolai convincingly defeated France’s Raphael Durivault with scores of 207–177 and 232–192. Kayden, meanwhile, was up against top-seeded Tobias Kastfelt Bryde of Denmark. After losing the first game 224–237, Kayden bounced back with a 221–213 win and followed up with an impressive 256–181 in the deciding game to advance alongside Nicolai to Step 2.
Nicolai then faced David Giantomassi of Italy and opened with a spectacular 289–217 victory. However, he was unlucky in the next two games, falling 182–207 and 172–206, thus concluding his outstanding EYC journey.
All attention then turned to Kayden, who faced Turkish home favourite Tuna Boncu. In two tightly contested games, Kayden held his nerve to win 214–202 and 211–209, securing a place in the semi-finals — and guaranteeing Malta another medal.
In the semis, Kayden faced Timeo Dujardin of France. Despite Kayden’s solid effort, Dujardin proved too strong with scores of 247 and 235, beating Kayden’s 186 and 208. This result placed Kayden in 3rd position, earning a well-deserved bronze medal.
Dujardin went on to win the Masters title, defeating Giantomassi with a dominant 211–182 and 276–214 victory in the final.
This concluded a highly successful campaign for the Maltese youth team, led by coach Mark Spiteri, with Malta earning three bronze medals — one for Nicolai Mallia in the singles, one in the team event, and now one for Kayden Lagana’ in the Masters.
