Third National Title of the year

Hi Everyone

Last Sunday I took part in the third race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathlon Series. This race was also the National Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships. I had a pretty slow start compared to the previous races. I could not find my usual pace un the swim and they were a lot of boats and small buoys which I was bumping into them. I manged to get into a sort of pace in the last 300m and went out of the water first in a time of 10.44

On the bike however I settled immediately into a good pace. I was feeling strong and was feeling my legs fresh. I paid attention not to overdo it on the bike as I wanted to do a good run. I came in T2 leading the race covering the 20km in 31.26. After a good transition I started the 5km at a fast pace trying to keep up with a runner who was part of a relay team.

Finally I managed to go under the 18minutes barrier in the run as I did the 5km in 17.55 to win my 19^th race of the season and the Sprint Distance title in 1.01.09, 15seconds away from my course record. I am very pleased with my performance. I am happy with my bike and run and am a bit disappointed with my swim as I could have gone much faster but I will be more careful about my start in the next race. This title was my 3^rd National Title of the year and my 9^th Multisport title of my career. Thanks to this victory I consolidated my first place in the general classification with more than 5 minutes lead.

 I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents, my brother in law Neil Galea and his wife Alin, my nutritionist Johanna Calleja, my masseur Owen Attard, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Challenge Malta Marathon, Mochika Outdoor life, DGtri.com, Starbene 24/7 and Lucida Laundry, my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation and the Kunsill malti ghall-isport for the constant support. I really wisk to thank the Maltese Olympic Committee for this opportunity. Also would like to thank my wife Elizabeth for her constant support and great patience.

That’s all for now 

Yours in sports 

Keith

Win at the Mazara del Vallo Olympic Triathlon

Hi Everyone

I just came back from a training camp in Sicily where I focused on all the three disciplines in order to improve my level of performance. The training camp was done thanks to the Maltese Olympic Committee through the Olympic Solidarity Programme where they gave me a scholarship on training camps as a prospective athlete for the Mediterranean Games 2017.

During the training camp I participated in the first Olympic Triathlon at Mazara del Vallo. The race was one of the most important races in the Sicilian Triathlon Calendar. I was a bit worried about my form as I was a bit tired from the training load I did so I was hoping that I will find my legs for the race. Thankfully as soon as I started the race, I was feeling well and I realised that I could do really well if I played my cards well

In the swim I stayed with the main group trying not to waste a lot of energy. In the 2^nd lap I went in front of the group because Davide Ventura who was leading the race, was gaining a lot of advantage.  I swam really well covering the 1.5k in 19.50 and came out from the water in 2^nd place with 90seconds away from the leader.

As soon as I went on the bike I tried to go alone but the Sicilians were hot on my heels. I tried another attack but it was useless so I decided to stay in the group. At least I managed to find collaboration with the Sicilians so that we work together to get Ventura. We were riding strong and we took Ventrua after 12km. Then we kept on the same pace till the end of the bike. Here I tried not to waste a lot of energy buy riding steady with a high cadence to reserve energy for the run

After a good transition I went out of T2 with Ventura and I immediately attacked him. He did not respond to my attack so I kept pushing till the end. There was a good atmosphere as all the spectators were really supporting me and although it was hot I still could push more. In the end I won the race in 1.52.23 with 3 miniutes infront of Ventura who came 2^nd and Marco Parrinello in third

.

 I am very pleased with my performance. I was a bit concered about my performance due to the heavy training but I found the required energy to win the race. I knew that I had a fast run and realised that the winner will be the one with the fastest run so I tried to reserve energy for the run as much as I could and I hydrated myself well because I knew that in the run it will be hot.I would like to thank all the Sicilians for the support and a big well done for organizing such a wonderful race

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents, my brother in law Neil Galea and his wife Alin, my nutritionist Johanna Calleja, my masseur Owen Attard, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Challenge Malta Marathon, Mochika Outdoor life, DGtri.com, Starbene 24/7 and Lucida Laundry, my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation and the Kunsill malti ghall-isport for the constant support. I really wisk to thank the Maltese Olympic Committee for this opportunity. Also would like to thank my wife Elizabeth for her constant support and great patience.

That’s all for now 

Yours in sports

Keith

Winner of the Birkirkara St Joseph 5km Running Series

Hi Everyone

Finally I won the BSJ 5km Running Series for the first time in my career. The consistency in all the three 5km paid off. It was a difficult series to win as I did these races as part of my training schedule. The races were held in the evening and before the race I always had to do a 13km run in the morning and a 4km Endurance swim session in the afternoon so I was not so sharp for the race but I always did my best.

In the first race I came 2nd and first Maltese in 16.16 behind Swedish professional runner Martin Wvopio who won the race in 16.10. In the 2nd race I came 2nd again and first Maltese in a time of 16.45 behind Portuguese professional runner Bruno Lima who won the race in 16.00. Here I went out too fast in the first 2km and I could keep the pace with Lima as got tired and the training effort took its toll but at least manged to increase my lead from my nearest rivals

In the third and final race which was on my birthday I was ready to give everything to win the series. In 2013 I came 2nd overall with very few seconds behind the winner. This time I wanted to win this series for the first time  in my career. I came 2nd again behind one of Malta's top runners Mark Herrera in 16.18 only 4 seconds behind Herrera thus I won the overall classification

I am very happy that I won this series for the first time in my career especially since it is organised by my club. The times registered were good considering that they were part of my training schedule and it was a good birthday present for myself as well. I would like to thank my brother/coach Dermot Galea, my swimmng coach Catalin Stan, my masseur Owen Attard, and my nutritionist Johanna Calleja, my parents and my wife's parents, my brother in Law Neil and his wife Alin,

I would like to thank also my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Mochika Outdoor Life, DGtri.com, Lucida Laundry, Challenge Malta Marathon, Jaycee Malta and Starbene 24/7,  my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation, the Maltese Olympic Committee and the the Kunsill Malti ghall-isport for the constant support. Most of all a big thanks goes to my wife Elizabeth for her great patience and great support.

Now am looking forward for these next two months as they are very important and busy as I have a lot of important races both locally and abroad. After the 2nd race of the BSJ Triathlon Series I had 3 weeks of pure training where I gave my everything in order to improve my level of performance. Both of my coaches gave a very hard training where I registered very good times and am looking forward for these upcoming races to see how much I have improved.

That's all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith

3rd Consecutive Course Record

Hi Everyone

On the 9^th August I was on the starting line of the 2^nd race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Sprint Triathlon Series.  2 weeks before the race I was in Poland for training camp under the guidance of my brother and coach Dermot Galea. The camp was very hard and demanding as it was very intensive. We worked a lot on strength especially on the bike since we had many long hills. I took the opportunity to participate in an 80km hilly cycling race. This was my first ever road race abroad and it was very tough as 30km were all hilly with 2000m ascent. Although the race was done in the middle of the training camp I still managed a respectable 20^th place from 150 cyclists. During the camp I managed a load of 30km of swimming 550km cycling and 70km running. It was very tough but I knew that all the pain I went through that week will going to be beneficial for the last races of the season. I would like to thank the Maltese Olympic Committee for this opportunity and my friend Piotr Yanuszewski who helped us a lot for the logistics during our stay in Poland

I had a very slow start in the swim. I really don’t know why I started so slow. Usually I have quite a very fast start.  However I was soon behind the relay team swimmers and stayed behind them till the end of the swimming segment. I was feeling strong and could have gone faster but I knew that it was going to be a hard race so I decided to keep the pace. I went out of the water first covering the 750m in a time of 10.14, 15 seconds better than the first race

On the bike I was feeling strong and I pushed from the very beginning. I was feeling the benefits of the training camp especially climbing up the hill. I noticed I was going to register a good time on the bike, thus I could go again for the course record. I did my best on the bike. I slowed down a bit in the last lap to prepare my legs for the run. I covered the 20km in a personal best time of 31.15

I entered first in T2 and after a good transition I started the 5km at a fast pace. I paced myself well. I was feeling a bit tired in the first half of the 5km but then I got well into my normal pace. I tried my best to go under 18minutes on the 5.1km course but I was not that fast as I wanted. I covered the run in 18.15 to win my 15^th race of the season in another course record time of 1.00.54. I am pleased with my performance. I am very happy to post again a course record. I managed to improve my time from last year by 1minute 30seconds. It’s good to see that margin of improvement. That means that the training is working.  The training camp worked a lot especially on the bike. At the moment I am training very hard in order to peak myself for the September and October races.

I would like to thank my brother/coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my nutritionist Johanna Galea, my masseur Owen Attard, my parents, my brother in Law Neil Galea and his wife Alin, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Mochika Outdoor life, Challenge Malta Marathon, Jaycee Malta, Dgtri.com personal coaching, Lucida Laundry and Starbene 24/7, my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation, the Maltese Olympic Committee and the Kunsill Malti Ghall-isport for the constant support. Most of all a big thanks goes to my wife Elizabeth for her great patience and her fundamental support which is very important for me.

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith

A New Sponsor Mochika - Outdoor Life

Mochika - Outdoor Life will be supporting Malta’s Duathlon, Aquathlon and Triathlon National Champion, Keith Galea. Galea, a talented triathlete running under Birkirkara St. Joseph, will this year be taking part in a number of local and international competitions, and therefore requires the highest level of support in order to sustain his performances.

Mochika – Outdoor Life, an outdoors shop situated in Mdina Road, Qormi, specialises in athletic performance and injury prevention, and they will be supporting Galea with the latest brands in running shoes, garments and nutrition, including Saucony, Compressport, Superfeet, Maxinutrition, Julbo, Sportique, Zamst and Mule Bar. Mochika – Outdoor Life also support a number of athletes and sport clubs, and Keith Galea, a top performer in the sport, is looking forward to compete with the help of the prominent brands available at Mochika. 

Keith Galea, who is under the KMS Flexi Training Scheme would like to thank Mochika for this sponsorship, Galea is having a brilliant season this year, winning 14 races in all. Amongst them, the famous Dingli 10miles road race, his third title in the National Duathlon Championships,  his victory in the Custonaci – Cornino Olympic Triathlon in Sicly and winning the National Mountain Running Title. He is currently leading the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathon Series and the Birkirakara St Joseph 5km Running Seres

Another Course Record

Hi Everyone

On Sunday 19^th July the Birkirkara St Joseph Triathlon Sprint Distance Series kicked off.  The weather was very difficult as it was very hot and humid and it was going to be difficult to perform especially after coming from a week sick with antibiotics. However 2 days before the race I was feeling better so I was confident to do a good performance.

I did not have a good start in the swim as I wished. Had a pretty slow one but I got my speed immediately and went behind the relay swimmers in order to push myself. I was feeling great and was feeling light and I was sure that I was going for a good time. Although the relay swimmers were sprinting in the end I tried to stay as close as possible bearing in mind that I still had the bike and run to do. I went out of the water first covering the 750m swim 10mins which is a very good time

After a reasonable good transition I started the bike at a steady pace. I was feeling the heat a lot so I settled into a good pace. I was caught by my team mate Graham Borg on the bike. I just kept focused on my own pace and not get distracted. In such moments one has to think about his own race. I knew the weather was hot so I did not pushed a lot on the bike and save energy for the run. After all it is a triathlon race not an individual time trial. We both lead the race keeping a very fast pace. In fact I covered the 20km hilly bike in a personal best time of 31.49 which was the second best bike split of the day.

We went in together in T2 and I just concentrated to do a fast transition as I can. In fact I went out of T2 again in first place and was getting faster and faster in the run, thus my lead was increasing. Although it was hard to keep on pushing due to the heat I did my best as I was on for a course record. In fact thanks to the best run of the day of 18.10 I won the race in a course record time of 1.01.21, more than a minute faster than my previous course record of last year

2 days later I took part in the 2^nd race of the Birkirakara St Joseph 5km Series. I felt that I recovered well from the triathlon and was targeting a new personal best however I ruined everything right from the start. I went out too fast covering the first 1km in 2.59. 2^nd kilometre was 3.09 but in the third kilometre I slowed down. My Legs just stopped and was overtaken by Portuguese runner Bruno Lima.  I did not had the legs to counter attack and just focused to keep the 2^nd place and increase my lead in the series. In the end I finished 2^nd in 16.45 and managed to increase my lead in the series with 9seconds.

I am very pleased with my course record. It means that I am stronger and faster than last year but I know I can lower my time in the coming races with good weather and with a much sharper form. I am not happy with my time in the 5km but I know it was my mistake and I know I can do much better. At least I managed to increase slightly my lead in the overall standings

.

I would like to thanks my brother/coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan. My parents, my brother in law Neil and his wife Alin, my nutritionist Johanna Callaja, my masseur Owen Attard, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Lucida Laundry, Mochika Outdoor Life, Starbene 24/7 and Challenge Malta Marathon, my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation and the Kunsill Malti Gll-isport and the Maltese Olympic Committee for the constant support. Most of all a big thanks to my wife Elizabeth for her great patience and for her fundamental backing and support

That’s all for know

Yours in Sports

Keith

Win in St Patrick's Aquathlon

Hi Everyone

After the great experience I had at the first European Games in Baku, it was time again to race here in Malta. On the 29th June, the St Patrick's Athletic Club organised their aquathlon for the second consecutive year at Marsaxlokk. The race was 2 weeks after Baku which were all full of heavy training so I was not that fresh as I wished on race race day, but I was determined to do a great race and improve my time from last year. 

I started at my usual fast pace. I was leading the race together with Mark Herrera, national team Track athlete and National Champion in various track events. I did my best to stay with him as I knew he is a very fast run and I can start aiming for a good personal best from the beginning. Mark entered in T1 first covering the 2.5km in 7.58. I came in 9 seconds later. I had a good transition and started the swim at a steady pace.

I could not swim fast from the beginning as It is very strange to swim after a run. You have to control the breathing first and set into a good momentum before one starts pushing. After I got myself together, I managed to set into a pace and managed to open a wide gap. I covered the 1km in 14.58. At this point i realized that if I do a good 2nd run a course record was possible. I really pushed myself to the limit and thanks to a second run of 8.27, I crossed the finishing line first in a course record time of 32.38. 1 minute 30sec better than last year 

Apart from the aquathlon I took part in 2 2km swimming races and in 1 5km race both in a series organised by the Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club. Both swims were good coming 4th and 5th respectively and managing to clock a personal best time of 26.59 in the third race of the swimming series. In the 5km I came 1st Maltese and 2nd overall behind a very fast track athlete from Sweden clocking a personal best time on the course of `16.16, 3 seconds only away from my personal best and 6 seconds only behind the winner.

I am very pleased with my performances. The fact that I managed to produce personal best and very fast times especially that I kept on training normal is very significant and very positive. Now am focused on the next races in Malta before I fly to Poland for a training camp. I would like to thank my brother coach Dermot Galea. my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my masseur Owen Attard, my parents and my wife's parents, my brother in Law Neil and his wife Alin and my nutritionist Johanna Galea. Most  of all a big thanks goes to my wife elizabeth for her her great support and patience.

I would like to thank my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Jaycee Malta, Challange Malta Marathon, Starbene 24/7, Mochika Outdoor Sports Life and Lucida Laundry, my club Birkirkar St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation, the Kunsill Malti ghall-isport for the Flexi Training Scheme and the Maltese Olympic Committee for the continous support.Would like to say a big well done to my athelte Annetto Schembri for posting a personal best time of 3 minutes from last year and a well done for St Patrick's AC for organising such a successful event. 

That's all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith