8th in TCSSE and 1st in BSJ Triathlon

Hi Everyone. Another race and another good result abroad. This time it’s an 8th Place in the Triathlon Championships of the Small States of Europe in Echternach, Luxembourg. In all honesty I really wanted to win a medal but this year the field consisted of professional triathletes from Luxembourg. In fact the first 7 triathletes were all from Luxembourg. I knew before the race that a medal was impossible especially since the Luxembourg Association linked the TCSSE with their National Championships and so the field consisted of the best Luxembourg athletes. However I still wanted to test myself among these guys and see what I can do. Well I am more than satisfied with the result achieved.

I started the race with a very good swim. I tried to go out as fast as I could to be with a good group and avoid being on the bike alone. I managed to stay in a group of three till the end of the swim covering the 1500 m in 22minutes. It was a good time for me and came out of the water in 11th place. I was really looking forward for the bike as the course was very undulating with a hill of 3km long with gradients touching 12%. This hill had to be done for 3 times so one had to save his legs for the run as well. I was feeling fine on the bike especially on the hills. We were working reasonably well in the group although some of them were risking too much in the corners. However these Luxembourg triathletes were not enjoying my company in the group so they launched several attacks which managed to cover them brilliantly. At one point it started raining a bit and roads were a bit slippery. I was very cautions at this point and still had to cover attacks and had to take some risks a bit. I covered the distance in 1hr 01 mins and started the run in 10th place.

I felt legs very fresh in the beginning of the run and since the course was flat I started at a fast pace to register a good run split. However I think I started too fast and the attacks were taking its toll, as I after 5km I had to deal with stitches and very painful cramps. At one point I had to stop running in the last lap. Unfortunately I had to slow down a lot to be able to finish the race in 8th place in 2hrs 5mins A week later, there was the second race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathlon Series. After Luxembourg, I took a very easy week in order to recover well for the race. The Olympic Race and all the travelling back to Malta ( got stuck for 8hrs in Luxembourg airport) took a bit out of me so needed a very easy week to be able to perform well. I was not expecting much from the race. All I wanted a good solid win. However I had to face fierce competition from my club mate Steve Chetcuti and from my brother/coach 10 times TRIATHLON CHAMPION Dermot.

It was a perfect race to test myself under pressure. I had a slow start but quickly recovered and stayed in the leading pack. We were a group of 6 and unfortunately swimmers of the relay teams did not helped as they don’t have a clue how to swim in the sea. We were slowing ourselves, hitting each other to stay in the draft instead of pushing together. Still did a good time of 11.30, 5 seconds better than last race. I went out of the water leading the race together with Dermot. After a good transition I started at a strong pace immediately expecting Dermot hot on my heels.

However it was not the case. Dermot was not having a good day at the office and then I started pushing harder to increase the gap. I was increasing the gap in every single lap. I was feeling strong and was keeping a good average speed. I covered the 20km in 29.17, 15seconds faster than last time and I was on target for a personal best. I started the run with more than a minute lead. Started strong but this time I did not had a runner of a relay team with me to set a good pace and push myself more. It was getting really hot and this affected my running performance. I could not run faster than I was, so I settled in a good pace to cruise to victory in 59minutes 52seconds. Steve finished strong 2nd 1min behind me and Dermot in 3rd place.

I am happy with my performance in Luxembourg. I could not have gone better even without having cramps. I could have finished in 7th but 7th or 8th for me does not make a difference. I am happy to have gone under the hour in such heat and after a hard Olympic race the week before. Now a week rest where I can eat what I want without taking care of the amount of calorie intake daily, have some rest but most important spending quality time with my fiancée whose support was amazing. That’s all for now Yours Keith

Victories at Salina and Xemxija Bay

Hi Everyone, June was another positive month for me. On the 10th of June I participated in the first Race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathlon Series. I won the series for 4 times and I wanted to defend my title with a win and a very strong performance. I wanted to continue with the winning momentum. I was peaking for the race of the week after, the TCSSE Selection race so I was not on top form as I continued with my normal schedule however when I am in a race, I go for the win. I had a pretty good swim; however my time was a bit slower than usual. The others were a bit closer than usual and so I started the bike segment at a strong pace. I was cycling well and powerful and felt good sensations, however at the back they were gaining ground due to the fact that they were a group of 6 and obviously that helped them a lot to produced very good bike splits. I covered the 20km in 29.32 which is a personal best on the course and started the run, leading the race with less than a minute.

I pushed the run from the beginning. I knew that I could go under the hour again and even try to go for the course record as I was running well. However the heat was taking its toll. Still kept a good pace covering the 5km in 17.46 to finish the race in 59.39, 10seconds away from my personal best and 30 seconds from the course record. A week later there was the TCSSE Selection Race. I was looking forward for this race as finally we were going to race in a different venue and the bike course really suited my climber characteristics as it was very undulating. I came out from the water in 2nd place in a time of 23mins. Considering the bad vision we had to face with all those boats in the bay and slowing down the pace to see the buoys, I was happy with the time.

Strangely coming out of the water I had cramps and I was afraid for a moment. The bike course is hard and was expecting cramps in the run and having cramps coming out of the water not even starting the bike was not a good sign. I started the bike at a steady pace keeping in mind that the bike course is hard (7 loops of the St. Paul’s by pass) and about the cramps. I was alone in front leading the race with a 2mins advantage on a group of 4 who were working hard together to catch me. However I was increasing my pace in every single lap and managed to gain some valuable seconds on the group. When I started the run, my legs were ok so I could push it on the run. However it was very hot; so tried to keep myself hydrated all the time. I continued to push to gain more time on the others at the back. Wanted to win with a good gap and managed to do so winning the race in 2 hours 13mins increasing my advantage to 3mins thus winning a spot in Team Malta who will fly to Luxembourg to represent the country in the TCSSE.

I am very pleased with both races. I managed to go under the hour in a sprint distance which is very good and I know that I can go much faster and give it a good try to lower the course record, and also pleased to be selected in Team Malta for the TCSSE with such a strong performance especially on the bike. I liked the bike course at Xemxija and I am pleased that I managed to hang on to the lead in front alone and even setting up the fastest bike split. I would like to say a big well done to the Malta Triathlon Assiciation for organising such a good race at xemxija. Finally we raced on a new course. Yours Keith