Opening Victories for Mark Zammit and Michelle Wood

The first race in the ninth edition of the Birkirkara St. Joseph Triathlon Series, which was held recently on the Salina-Bahar ic-Caghaq Coast Road, attracted a record number of triathletes. Thirty-two triathletes lined up for the start of this sprint triathlon in perfect sea conditions. Race winners Mark Zammit and Michelle Wood, confirmed their current good form with an excellent performance, beating the national champions in their respective categories.

The males’ race was the closest one could ever get. It resulted in an hour long duel between Zammit and national champion Dermot Galea for the top spot. In the 750 metres swim, Zammit set a fast pace leaving the field in his trail by 44 seconds. He reached transition area in 10 minutes 51 seconds, to set off on the 20 kilometre bike segment. However Galea’s cycling prowess astounded the race leader. The former cycled the distance in 30 minutes 30 seconds to Zammit’s 31 minutes 16 seconds, thus entering transition area just ahead of Zammit. However the unpredictable Zammit turned on an astonishing performance in the final 5 kilometres run. He quickly returned to the top spot and even managed to open what looked like an insurmountable gap on the champion. With a 100 metres to go and victory within his clutches, he had Galea breathing down his neck in an incredible comeback by the Birkirkara champion. Zammit found the power to react and both triathletes surged forward for a final dash towards the finish line. At the end it was Zammit who won the race by three seconds in a time of one hour 45 seconds. Brian Magri, who had the best running time in the race (17:02), finished third in one hour, three minutes 30 seconds.

The females’ race was a one-sided affair with Michelle Wood dominating throughout the race, particularly in the bike and run segments. She was third out of the 750 metres swim in 13 minutes 29 seconds, behind national champion Danica Spiteri (13:26) and new-comer Roberta Zammit (13:27). In the 20 kilometres bike segment Spiteri kept Wood well in her sight, just 17 seconds separating them at the beginning of the final five kilometres run. Determined to add a triathlon victory to her duathlon championship she won earlier on this year, Wood set a punishing pace, gradually opening the gap between her and the champion. She ran the distance in 21 minutes 39 seconds, to win the race in one hour 10 minutes eight seconds, handing Spiteri a rare defeat by one minute 10 seconds. Donatelle Callus finished third in one hour 14 minutes 37 seconds.

The next race in this series will be held on Sunday, 6th September on the same route, starting at 7:30 a.m.

Related Posts :