Great 3rd Place in the Malta Challenge Marathon to finish the best season of my career

After winning m 5^th National Title and the Sicily Triathlon Championships in San Vito lo Capo my focus went on the Malta International Challenge Marathon. This was my first attempt to do this 3 day challenge so I really planned everything to the detail as much as possible especially in those 3 days were my main concern was the recovery and the diet. 2 weeks before the race I did the Zurrieq 10km were I finished in a good 3^rd place in a time of 34.10 just 10seconds away from the winner. This result was very encouraging as my running speed was on target

In Stage 1 we covered a distance of 11.195km were I placed 3^rd overall in a time of 39.30, a personal best on the route. The course was very hilly so I was pleased with my time. In the 2^nd Stage, the race was held in B’Bugia. I covered the 6km in a time of 20.28 again finishing in 3^rd place. I was spot on target as I was 3^rd overall and I was going for a time of 2hrs 35mins in all

On Sunday, we had the last stage. 25km from St Paul’s Bay till Valletta. I had to admit that I was a bit excited before the race. I was 3^rd overall but I only had 45 seconds advantage from the 4^th placed runner and he was a pure marathon runner. I am a triathlete and I was going to do my longest ever running race with 2 races already in my legs. But I was determined to finish in third place no matter what

It was a race were I had to handle a lot of stress and pressure. The French man stayed behind for all the race and attacked me in the down hills. I always kept my pace and managed respond to his attacks by keeping my own pace. But at 4km to go we had the Police Depot hill of Floriana and it was the right time to attack. My legs were tired but I did not want to finish in a sprint finish. I had to risk so I closed my eyes, and I attacked. I managed to open a good gap. The French guy did not respond and I continued pushing till the finishing line. I used all the energy left on my body. Crossing the finishing line on Valletta in 3^rd place among Malta ‘s top runners and very good intentional runners Is a great result and a great emotion. I finished 3^rd overall covering the 25km in 1hr 34mins 46 seconds for a total time of 2hrs 34mins 35seconds.

When crossing the finishing line my body really collapsed and had to go to the ambulance. I was totally knackered. All the efforts, pressure and the stress of the whole season took its toll but I did not care. I was happy with my result and now I can rest as the challenge was the last race for 2015. After the challenge I took a week off with very light training and I resumed my normal training schedule the week after.

In fact my preparations for the 2016 seasons started really well as I am l ready posting very fast times during my training. Also I took part in the 10km Fleur de Lys organised by my club Birkirkara St Joseph and I finished in 2^nd place in a good time of 33.57 which is a personal best on the course and less than 30seconds away from my personal best. I am really looking forward for next season. My target is that not only I continue were I LEFT IN 2015 but I want to be faster, stronger and quicker. It is not easy but not impossible and I am going to train really hard to achieve my targets

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents, my nutritionist Johanna Galea, my masseur Owen Attard, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Cycling Malta, Jaycee Malta, Malta Challenge Marathon, Mochika Outdoor Liwe, Lucida Laundry, DGtri.com, and Starbene 24/7, my Club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation, the Maltese Olympic Committee and sportmalta for the constant support .Also a big thanks goes to my No 1 Supperter, my wife Elizabeth for her support and great great patience

I would like to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year 2016. Thanks a lot for following my blog. Keep you updated

That’s all for know

Yours in Sports

Keith

A good run gives me a great win in the Sicily Regional Championships

Hi Everyone

Still fresh from my 5^th National Triathlon Title, I participated in the Regional Championships of Sicily which were held in San Vito Lo Capo in the province of Trapani. The Triathlon was composed of a 750m swim, 20km bike and a 5km run. The race was of a very high level as the best Sicilian triathletes and triathletes from Italy participated in these championships.

I had a good 750m swim and came out of the water forth but in the main group. After a good transition, I stayed in the main group controlling my rivals and at the same time reserving my energy for the run. In the last 5km of the bike segment, Daniele Galasso from team Reaction of Udinese attacked the main group. I, counter attacked and followed Gallasso. Although I was riding on a flat tyre, I still managed to control my bike and worked well with Galasso and opened a good gap from the main group.

After a fast transition I took the lead in the beginning of the run and was gaining ground on Galasso and the rest. My pace was so high, that no one could match it and went on to win my 24^th win of the season in a course record time of 57.14. Galasso finished second in 57.58 whilst Vincenzo Tommasello of Multisport Catania finished third in 58.05

A week after I took part in the Garmin 15m. This was my 7^th straight race since the beginning of September. I did not rested after the triathlon in San Vito lo Capo as I had to continue training hard as I want to peak for my last target of this season, the Malta Challenge Marathon. My legs were tired so I was expecting much and took this race as a hard training session

.

Started the race in the lead with Mark Herrera and Charlton Debono. I knew that I had to make my move early as I don’t want to end in a sprint finish. I did two good attacks but my legs could not sustain the pace and in the last 500m Charlton and mark Herrera attacked and I could not respond as my legs were just stuck in the pace. I finished the race in a time of 16.35 in 3^rd place.

I am very happy with both races. I am pleased with the Sicily race as I raced perfectly. I used my head well. I did the right move at the right time which gave me a good win abroad with a course record. In the 5km I wished I went much faster but I could not pretend more from my legs as they were tired due to the amount of training and racing so in all the time for a training race is good

I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalon Stan, my nutritionist Johanna Calleja, my masseur Owen Attard, my parents and my wife’s parents, my brother in law neil galea and his wife Alin, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Cycling Malta, Jaycee Malta, Mochika Outdoor Life, Challenge Malta Marathon, Lucida Laundry, Starbene 24/7, Dgtri.com, my Club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Malta Triathlon Federation, sportmalta, and the Maltese Olympic Committee for the constant support. Most of all a big thanks goes to my wife Elizabeth for her constant support but most of all for her great patience with me

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith

5th National Triathlon Title

Hi Everyone

Last Sunday, I won my 5^th National Triathlon Title. It was a very hard race. The bike course was very tough with a steep hill to be repeated 7 times and many false flats parts and it was really windy. The sea was so rough that the swimming course had to be changed in order to be safe for us athletes

I don’t like to swim in very rough sea but I wanted this title at all costs. I went immediately infront and surprisingly I was swimming very fast. I managed to open a gap and went out of the water first. After a good transition I immediately started pushing the bike to maintain my advantage but the course was not good for my characteristics and the wind was hampering my performance due to my small physique

However I was still riding strong and decided to slow a bit down the phase in the later stages of the bike to let my legs recover for the run. I had a pretty fast transition and went out in the run to consolidate the gap. I could not run comfortably at first. I was feeling the hard efforts on the bike so I set on a steady pace. As soon as I felt my felt better and that they were getting into the pace I pushed more and more even though it was very windy and managed to win my 5^th title of the year and my 5^th National Triathlon title in 2hrs 8mins.

I am very pleased with my performance. It’s always nice to win this race as it is the reason why I started triathlon. Thanks to this win, I won also the Triathlete of the Year Award for the 8^th time in my career beating my brother’s record of 7 wins. I would like to thank my coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents, my nutritionist Johanna Galea, and my masseur Owen Attard

I would like also to thank my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Cycling Malta, Challenge Malta Marathon, Jaycee Malta, Lucida Laundry, DGtri.com, Mochika Outdoor Life, , my club Birkirkara St Joseph, The Malta Triathlon Federation, Sportmalta and the Maltese Olympic Committee for the Constant Support. Most of all a big thanks goes to my wife Elizabeth for the constant support and for helping in performing well in such important events

That’s all for now

Yours in Sports

Keith

Winner of the BSJ Triathlon Series for the 8TH TIME

Hi Everyone

The season is coming to an end soon with the Grand Final Race on the 11^th October, the National Triathlon Championships. Last week we had the last Sprint Triathlon Race of the Birkirkara ST Joseph Triathlon Series. I was not that sharp for the race as I am peaking for the National Championships so I was not expecting much

Finally I had a very fast start in the swim. I managed to stay with the relay team swimmers who they were really pushing but I was happy as I had someone to push with. I went out of the water covering the 750m swim in 10.30. After a good transition I started the bike at a good pace. I was feeling strong but I was not going as fast as I wished. I managed to cover the 20km in 32.14 coming into T2 in first place. After another fast transition I started the 5km fast trying to increase my lead as much as I could. I had the best run of the day as well of 18.15 to win my 21^st races of the season in a time of 1.02.21

I am pleased with my performance as I was feeling very strong but I was not fast. After the race I talked to my coach and told me that its obvious since I had two very hard weeks and this race was just a training race for us. Still I felt good which gives me a good boost for the national Championships as I managed to set another record by winning this series for the 8^th time in my career and this was the 4th win in a row all in September. Abig well done to my athlete Annetto Schembri for posting a Personal Best by 5 mins in a space of just 2 weeks. Well done buddy

I would like to thank my brother/coach Dermot Galea, my swimming coach Catalin Stan, my parents and my wife’s parents,my nutritionist  Johanna Galea, my masseur Owen Attard, my sponsors Garmin Malta, BBB Bike Parts Malta, Mochika Outdoor life, Startbene 24/7, Challenge Malta Marathon and Jaycee Malta, the Malta Triathlon Federation, my club Birkirkara St Joseph, the Kunsill Malti ghall-isport and the Maltese Olympic Committee for the constant support. Most of all a big thanks goes to my wife Elizabeth for her great support and patience.

That's all for now

Yours in Sports 

Keith

National Aquathlon Champion for the 2nd Consecutive Year

Hi Everyone,

Another National title. Last week I won the National Aquathlon Championships for the 2^nd consecutive year. This was my 2^nd national title win in a week, my 10^th Multi-sport National title and my 4^th National title of the year. Since I am peaking for the National Triathlon Championships in October which is the Grand Final and the most important race of our Calendar, I was not that sharp and rested for the race so I was not expecting very fast times

I went out fast as usual leading the race and try to open a gap. However I could not open a wide gap in just a 2.5km run and also with tired legs. Still I came first in T1 covering the first run in 8.36. Then thanks to a very fast transition I immediately opened a good gap and started the swim at a very fast pace

I really do not like the change from run to swim as it’s a real shock to the body but I immediately settled into a good rhythm. I knew I was swimming well and I pushed a lot to open a good lead. In fact thanks to the best swim split of the day of 15.20 for the 1.1km, I had over a minute lead until I started the 2^nd 2.5km Run. I kept on pushing in the 2^nd run as I knew I was for another course record. In the end I won my 2^nd Aquathlon title in a course record time of 33.52, 48 seconds better than last year

I am very pleased with my performance. Winning the race with such an advantage and with another course record gives me a huge boost for the upcoming important triathlon races. 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,

Also I would like to thank 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

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