Luke Micallef and Lisa Bezzina got off their domestic running season with a fine win at the
Athletics Malta Cross Country Championship. The once-yearly event brought together many
of the best athletes who followed a non-traditional, 9 km country grass course around the
Marsa grounds.
Pembroke’s Micallef continued his strong form demonstrated throughout numerous events
winning the top prize in 28:23, while evergreen Charlton Debono (Evolve) claimed second
place in 28:40 ahead of teammate Shaun Galea (28:51).
In the female category, Pembroke’s Lisa Marie Bezzina claimed top spot in 33:53 ahead of
Rachel Borg (Libertas) who took second spot in 34:38.
Among the younger athletes, David Borg won the Under 23 event, running the 7000 metres
distance in 22 minutes net , while among the Under 20s, Gabriel Farrugia took top spot in
16:00 over 5000 metres, ahead of Tommy Wallbank who registered a time of 16:31.
The results achieved in these Championships as well as recent performances by the best
performers are now being assessed by Athletics Malta to determine the national team to
represent Malta at the European Cross Country Championships that will be held in Brussels,
Belgium on Sunday 10th December 2023.
