1st in Mellieha AC Sprint Duathlon

Hi Everyone,

On the 19^th April I was on the starting line of The Sprint Duathlon which was organised by Mellieha AC at Dingli cliffs and consisted of a 5km run, 20km bike and a 2.5km Run. I was looking for a strong performance as I wanted to make my intentions of challenging for honours very clear victory, particularly in the quest to win back the forthcoming National Duathlon Championships

I went immediately into the lead by setting a very fast pace. Nobody could match my pace. I wanted to open a good gap which I managed to do so however I was closely followed by a British triathlete Richard Backstorm. I came in first in T1 covering the 5km in 16.50 with only 10seconds lead on Richard Backstorm. I did not know anything about Backstorm but kept calm. I wanted to test him to see what his potential was on the day. I went to tackle the 20km at a very high pace trying to open a gap between us. I managed to do so as I was increasing my lead. However it was being threatened by club team mate Wayne Spiteri who was having a storming Bike segment.

I came in T2 with 20seconds lead on Wayne Spiteri and 1mins on Backstrom.   However none of the two could match my fast running pace as he covered the last 2.5km in 8mins to win my 3^rd Race of the season in 58.31 which is a new course record by 7mins. Wayne Spiteri managed to hold on to 2^nd position to finish the race in 59.13 to complete a one –two for Birkirkara SJ. Backstrom came home in third place in 59.40

I am really satisfied with my performance. Duathlons are not my forte but this result shows that I am in a very good shape and am looking forward for the Duathlon Championships and get back the title I  lost last year due to an injury . The fast pace I managed to sustain throughout the whole race and the 7mins course record make my intention of challenging for the honours very clear.

A big well done goes to my athlete Anatoly Gatt for setting a new personal best on this course by a massive 12mins. Well done mate. So happy for you. Keep them coming!!!!! For this race I had a new running racer shoes. I used the Scott Rocker Racer for this race. I found it very light and comfortable. Although its a racer shoes it has a good cushioning to avoid the impact which is very rare in racer shoes. Although it has a good cushioning it is still very very light. I am pleased to have bought such a good running shoes and in fact found it so good that managed to set the fastest running splits in both runs.

I would like to thank my brother coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents for their support. Thanks so much to my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Malta Challenge Marathon, and Starbene Shop of Mosta for their support, and my club Birkirkara St Joseph for their support. Last but not least, big thanks go to my wife Elizabeth for being by my side all the time leading up to such an important event for me. Here support is fundamental for me and without her I cannot produce such a great performance as I did. Here presence during races gives me so much comfort and strength that I will be able to express myself to the best of my abilities in races.

That’s all for now

Yours in Sport

Keith

Strong performance in the Tour of Malta

Hi Everyone

Recently I took part in the tour of Malta. The tour was held from the 3^rd April till the 6^th April. I was not expecting anything from this tour. The main reason why I participated was that I wanted to use it as a hard training session to boost my bike performance for the rest of the season. Since the tour attracts many foreign cyclists it was a good opportunity to push myself to the limit by trying to keep up with the best cyclists

The tour kicked off on Thursday 3^rd April with an 18.2km Time Trail held at the Mellieha by pass. Although the tour was a training session for me still I treated it as an important race so I did everything I do normally when I do a race with a proper warm up for each stage and with a good nutrition targeted to have sufficient energy over the four days. Still it was an international event where I was representing my club and my sponsors so I still wanted to perform well to the best of my cycling abilities.

The weather on Thursday was really windy. My start was very late and was getting nervous by time as I was very early as usual. I was not very happy with the wind. I knew I was going to suffer. However I started the tour on a high note. The Time Trail went really well. Felt powerful and was able to ride strong against the wind. I covered the 18.2km in 30.54 to finish in 20^th place and 5^th Maltese from 65 cyclists, a very positive performance.

On Friday 4^th April we had a 100km Road race. We had to do 10 laps around San Martin Circuit. My aim was to stay with the leading group and with the top Maltese Cyclist as much as possible. I managed to stay with the main group for most of the race. Sometimes I lost some ground on the main pack but managed to re-enter in the main bunch. However at 2 laps to go I could not cover an attack and lost the main group. My legs were getting tiered with all those attack as they are not used to such a thing. I ended up alone at one point. Again it was very windy, thus I lost a lot of time. At the end of the race I was simply drained. I gave everything I had, and cycling alone against that wind really tired me and was only hoping to recover for the next stage. I finished the race in 21^st overall and 5^th Maltese. In the overall classification I was 21^st overall and 6^th Maltese

Luckily on Saturday I woke up well. The massage I took the day before soon after the race worked. We had another hilly road race, this time we had to cycle 12 laps around Nadur circuit which is situated on Gozo. Again it was another windy day but I was determined to get some of the time lost at San Martin. I had a very strong race. I attacked from the very first lap, however none of the foreign teams wanted a breakaway. I tried to go on the attack several times but did not manage. However this time I managed to stay in the main pack and in the general classification I gained a few positions to 19^th overall and 5^th Maltese.

On Sunday was the last stage. A short 12km Time Trail at Zebbug By Pass. I was strong during the race but it was very windy and this time was not that strong against the winds and lost valuable seconds. At Nadur I pushed a lot that in this TT I did not had the legs I wished for to improve my position in the GC. However I finished my 6^th Tour of Malta in 19^th overall and 6^th Maltese. Not bad for a triathlete and for someone who did not prepare specifically for such a race. In the end I achieved my target, that to push beyond my limits on the bike. Now I hope to recover well from the tour and see the benefits I am wishing for.

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Stan Ioan Catalin my sponsors Garmin Malta, Starbene Shop of Mosta, BBB Bike Parts – Malta, challenge Malta Marathon and Jaycee Malta, my club Birkirkara St Joseph especially our general secretary Euchar Camilleri, the Malta Triathlon Federation for the constant support and my wife’s parents. A big thanks goes to my parents who followed me really close during this tour. Thanks to my masseur Owen Attard because thanks to his massages I was able to recover well between the stages.

Thanks to my dear wife Elizabeth for her constant support and her patience. My wife is very important to me. She could not come to see me in the first 2 stages due to work commitments. I felt a bit strange without her. I want her close to me in every single race. In fact when she came to see me in Nadur , I immediately had a strong performance. Although she could not come to see me, she still prepared me the food after each stage and also she prepared wonderful dinners in the evening. Thanks qalbi xxxxx

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith.

Great Performance in Smart City Triathlon

Hi Everyone,

On the 30^th of March I was on the starting line of the Smart City Olympic Triathlon which was held in Kalkara. The purpose of this race was to assess us National Team members and select the athletes who will make it to the Commonwealth Games. In fact the bike course was very technical in order to be similar as much as possible to Glasgow’s Route. My training was targeted to this race. A week before this race I took part in a 50km road race held at the Mellieha By Pass. It was the last pure test before this important event

 The cycling race was very hard. The Mellieha By pass is very hilly and to repeat it eight times is tough. In the first 3 laps I tried various times to attack but the group did not let me go. Then I just calmed down a bit and stayed with the top Maltese Cyclists. There were several attacks from the main contenders. We ended up only 4 fighting for the win until at two laps to go where there was another attack which I could not respond and ended up in 4^th place. I tried hard to get back but my legs could not give me more. I was feeling the effects of the attacks I did in the beginning as legs were getting tired. Then I kept a constant pace and settled to 4^th Place till the finish with less than a minute from the winner.

I went for the Kalkara race with one target, to win, but not only to just win. I want to win with wide gap. I wanted to show everyone that this year I am on top shape. From the word go I went immediately in the lead. For the first time in my life I had a very fast start in the swim. I immediately settled in a very fast pace and tried to keep the paced till the end of the swim. The sea was a bit choppy and my sighting was not very good. In fact I ended up swimming more than 1.5km. I went out of the water in 20.30 which was the best swim split of the day

The bike was very hard. The course was hilly and technical and the strong winds made it more difficult. In certain parts of the course the winds were so strong that it was difficult to control the bike. I was gaining ground on everyone but not on the 2^nd placed athlete. I had around 1 minute lead, so I just settled in a good pace in the end and save my legs for the run. Still I managed to register the best bike of the day.

In the run I immediately settled into a fast pace. Again it was windy and I could run the usual pace but it was the last chance to increase the gap. I pushed a lot. I noticed that my advantage was increasing so I kept on pushing till the very end as my legs were fine and still fresh. I won the race in a time of 2hrs 9mins registering also the best run of the day as well. I won the race with a good margin, 5.30 from 2^nd place and 8.30 from 3^rd place athlete.

I am very happy with the performance. The way I felt throughout the whole race was fantastic and this means that I am on the right track. I had a storming swim and run. The bike was good but I suffered a lot because of the strong winds and the wheels I used were not good for such conditions which made things even harder. I am also very satisfied with my performance in the cycling race. Being there among the top Maltese cyclists is very encouraging. If I used my energy more sensibly I could have done better but it was a good training race

I would like to thank my brother coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents for their support. Thanks so much to my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Malta Challenge Marathon, and Starbene Shop of Mosta for their support, my club Birkirkara St Joseph and the Malta Triathlon Federation for their support. Last but not least, big thanks go to my wife Elizabeth for being by my side all the time leading up to such an important event for me. Here support is fundamental for me and without her I cannot produce such a great performance as I did. Here presence during races gives me so much comfort and strength that I will be able to express myself to the best of my abilities in races.

That’s all for now

Another post will be uploaded soon so stay tuned.

Yours in Sport

Keith

2nd Maltese in Malta Half Marathon

Hi Everyone

On the 23^rd February I was on the starting line of the 29th edition of the Malta Half Marathon. I did not trained specifically for this race as everything is targeted for the commonwealth games however the race happened to be in my recovery week so I was expecting a good result.  Last year I trained specifically for this race but unfortunately could not give my best as I was sick on the day although I managed a time of 1hr 15mins.  However ,I was determined to do better than last year.

I started the race at a good pace and stayed with Athleta’s Richard Chetcuti. Together we were leading the Maltese males’ race. After 7km we were caught but other two Maltese Runners, Athleta’s Mark Herrera and Agones’ Charlie Cilia. At this point I was feeling my legs getting tired and heavy. I was a bit surprised as it was a bit too early in the race to feel my legs in that way. Luckily I was in good shape and was running strong. All that downhill we had till that point was taking its effects on my legs.

I noticed that the two Athleta runners were struggling however Charlie Cilia was still running well. After 14km Cilia increased the pace and only I managed to keep his pace. From then on, we attacked each other several times but none of us was going to give up. I tried my last attack in the last kilometre but my legs were blocked and heavy. Charlie noticed it and attacked at 500m to go and went on to win the Maltese Males’ race in 1hr 12.30

I tried to respond to his sprint but my legs could not give more. I realised that I was going to do a very fast time. I sprinted as fast as I could and finished the race 5^th overall and 2^nd Maltese in a time of 1hr 12mins 52sec, a new personal best on the distance by 2mins 30sec. I am very happy with my performance. I was not expecting such a fast time as the race was part of my training schedule. The improvement over last year, confirm the progress on view to the forthcoming triathlon races.However am a bit disappointed of losing the first Maltese placing by a mere 20seconds again. The fact that I am triathlete and not a marathon runner was the main fact that I lost the race and also I did not peaked for the race.  However I want to congratulate Charlie on his deserved victory.

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Stan Ioan Catalin my sponsors Garmin Malta, Starbene Shop of Mosta, BBB Bike Parts – Malta, challenge Malta Marathon and Jaycee Malta, my club Birkirkara St Joseph especially our general secretary Euchar Camilleri, the Malta Triathlon Federation for the constant support, my parents and my wife’s parents. Thanks everyone for your support. Thanks to my dear wife Elizabeth for her constant support and her patience. Hope you enjoyed your birthday my love. Soon we will celebrate our first Wedding anniversary.

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith.

Flying Start for 2014

Hi Everyone,

Finally 2014 started. I am really looking forward for this year as it’s a very important year to me. It’s the year of the Commonwealth Games which are going to be held in Glasgow at the end of July. I have been preparing for these games since November 2011. Every single session is targeted for this important event. For me going to the Commonwealth Games means like going to the Olympics. The level is the same. All the big guns of triathlon will be there battling for gold including Current Olympic Champion Alistair Brownlee and also his brother Jonny who was World Triathlon Champion in 2012. I am doing a lot of sacrifices and I want to go to Glasgow at all costs, no matter what. I want to represent Malta and perform well among the top world triathletes.

As soon as the New Year started I went for a training camp in Gozo, working hard on those hills. It was a very hard Training camp and I don’t know how I managed to finish it. It was the hardest training camp I ever done. The last day for the training was the hardest one. My legs were all in pain. Had to do a hilly long run and I still went out to do it but it was the longest and painful long run I ever did in my life. Afterwards, I went straight to bed to recover before returning back home. The day after was dead knackered. My wife as always played a vital role during the training camp. She really supported me and encouraged me in order to finish training.

The first race of 2014 was the first race of the Al Fresco Triathlon Series organised by Agones Sfc. It was a drafting duathlon consisting of 4.5km run, 18km bike and 2.5km run. I was determined to do a good race although I had very heavy and tired legs due to hard training. Still legs were strong on the day and went into the lead from the very beginning. I set a fast pace which I managed to keep it till the end. Luckily legs were strong and registered the fastest times of the day in all the three segments went on to win the race in 55minutes 18seconds, by a margin of 4 minutes from the 2^nd placed athlete.

 A week later I participated in the 4^th round of the MAAA Road Running League, which was a 10km held at Taqali. The race happened to be in my recovery week so I was expecting a good performance. It was very windy so I was not expecting any Personal Bests. I started the race staying with the top runners of Malta, Andrew Grech of Mellieha and Ibrahim Hussien of St Patrick’s. After 4km Andrew increased the pace and I stayed with Ibrahim. I really pushed to stay with him until 3km to go. Ibrahim increased the pace drastically and went on to catch Andrew who was 100m in front of us. Eventually he won the race. I realised that I was close to beat my personal best. I pushed hard till the end to finish the race in a personal best time of 33minutes 36seconds finishing 3^rd overall and 2^nd Maltese.

On the 9^th February I took part in the Attard A.C’S 10km. Here I was not expecting much. Again I had heavy and tired legs due to the training load. In fact this time I could not stay with Andrew who on  the day was a class of his own. I stayed in the main group but after 1km I increased the pace and kept my own pace. I opened a gap from the group but not much. I kept steady in the first half of the race as I wanted to reserve some energy for the 2^nd half which is much faster. The guys behind where reducing the gap. I really pushed harder in the 2^nd part of the race and managed to hold on to 2^nd place to finish the race in a good time of 33minutes 47 seconds

I am very pleased with my performances in all the 3 races. These were all training races so the fact that I performed in all of them means that everything is on the right track. I want to reach my first peak of the year by the end of March for the Commonwealth Games Selection Race.

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Stan Ioan Catalin my sponsors Garmin Malta, Starbene Shop of Mosta, BBB Bike Parts – Malta, challenge Malta Marathon and Jaycee Malta, my club Birkirkara St Joseph especially our general secretary Euchar Camilleri, the Malta Triathlon Federation for the constant support, my parents and my wife’s parents. Thanks everyone for your support. Thanks to my dear wife Elizabeth for her constant support and her patience especially during the training camp and for coming to support me in all the races. Sorry for waking you up so early.

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith.

A New Sponsor: Malta Challenge Marathon

Malta Challenge Marathon are my new sponsors. Mr Barry M. Whitmore, who is the Founder, President and Race Director of the Challenge Marathon, is very pleased to have reached an agreement  in order to help me in my quest to represent Malta in the next Commonwealth Games in July. This is the first time that Mr Whitmore will be sponsoring a Triathlete since most of his sponsored athletes are all Long Distance Runners but thanks to the results achieved in the last 2 years, I not only managed to establish myself as the best Triathlete on the Island, but also  I am among the top 3 long distance runners in Malta as well.

On Monday 27th January 2014, Barry M. Whitmore, announced the STAGE 2 of a sponsorship deal for 6 top Maltese Club distance runners in which Galea is part of. In conjunction with “The Runners Centre”, official exclusive agent for Hilly & Ron Hill Clothing & Accessories, all these runners received running kit to the value of € 120. Barry has also included FREE entry into this year’s MALTA CHALLENGE MARATHON as part of the runner’s package.

Now I join Stage 1 group of runners together with the other 4 runners and all form part of “The Runners Centre” sponsored team. This benefit is we can participate as The Runners Centre Team where ever an event allows this to happen and where the athlete can not make their own club’s team for what ever reason.

I am very pleased to have reached an agreement with Barry and am very proud to be part of this team. I would like to thank Mr M. Whitmore for showing such confidence in my abilities and I promise to represent the Malta Challenge Marathon in the best possible way.

Back to Training

Hi Everyone

After the National Triathlon Championships I immediately went into a new phase in my training plan. It was off-season time. It was a month long and I took the opportunity to relax a bit and recover from the stress and pressure I had during the 2013 season. My aim during this period was to spend some quality time with my wife, who really helped me throughout the whole year

2013 was another successful season where I achieved a lot. I won the National Championships for the third time in my career, 1^st overall in the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathlon Series for the 6^th time in my career and setting the course record in the 3^rd race, 2^nd overall in the Birkirkara St Joseph 5km Running Series, 3^rd overall in the Birkirkara St Joseph Swimming Series, 3^rd Maltese in the Malta Half Marathon, 4^th overall in the MAAA Road Running League (1^st age group), had great performances in the World Triathlon Championships held in London and in the Garmin Cernobbio Triathlon were I raced with professional triathletes and won the Bronze Medal in the European Triathlon Championships where I also registered a New National Record on an Olympic Distance of 1hr 57minutes. In all I won 7 races this year with is very good. However If I had to choose the best moment of 2013 is none of the above. The climax of my 2013 is when Elizabeth became my wife on the 15^th March, the most important and beautiful day of my life

 With the amount of training I trained I pretended to be much faster, much more dominant. 2013 was a very difficult year. There were two particular races which I really wanted to win, the Malta Half Marathon and the National Duathlon Championships but due to sickness and injuries I could not perform as I wished. The Half Marathon was just before the wedding. I trained specifically for it but unfortunately I got sick and went on the starting line with 102 temperatures. At least I managed third although till 1km to go I was 1^st Maltese. Then the Duathlon came 8 weeks after the honeymoon. They were 8 hard weeks where had to get my top form back. I managed to do so but in race week I injured my hamstring and did not performed.  I was thinking that I was having a sort of bad luck for the whole 2013. Things were not going as planned

Then from that race everyone where questioning my abilities. Some people were talking nonsense, that I will not perform well, but how can you judge an athlete from 1 single race? These same people forgot what a great season I had in 2012. I was very angry and as my wife tells me I gave an answer not with words but with facts. The answers they got are listed above.

I started pure training in the first week of November and in December the training load increased with an average of 28 hours of training per week. At the moment I am training only on Endurance, Long sessions in every discipline. I am taking care of every single detail. I am training hard but sensible, my nutrition is in conjunction with my training as well and the results are coming. I came 3^rd in the Fleur de lys 5km organised by my club and registered a good time of 16.24 just 8seconds away from my Personal Best. It was an unexpected time at this stage of my training.

2013 finished on a high note as I won a special award at the MOC Sports Awards night on the 30^th November and made it again for the third time in my career in the semi final of the Sportsman of the Year award for the Ghazla Sportivi Nazzjonali. For 2014 I have high ambitions. I want to achieve all the targets I set. I want to repeat the 2012 season or even better. I am determined and am really focused to have a great and successful 2014.

I would like to thanks my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents, wife's parents, my sponsors Garmin Malta, Starbene Shop of Mosta, BB Bike Parts Malta and Jaycee Malta, my club Birkirkara St Joseph especially our General SAecretart Euchar Camilleri and the Malta Triathlon Federation for the constant support. But most of all thanks to my wife Elizabeth for her great patience and support through out this difficult year. Its thanks to you that I am still the top Maltese Triathlete. 

That's All for now. Hope you had a nice christmas and wish you a prosperous and healthy New Year 2014

Yours in Sport
Keith