HENRY BRINCAT
The Maltese Olympic Committee’s Director of Sport, Mark Cutajar, is expecting a tough time for Maltese athletes taking part in the Games for European Small States in Cyprus next month.
Cutajar, who has only been in the post for the past two months, said that the local athletes had been under pressure during the past few months, trying hard to obtain the MQS set by the MOC after the Monaco Games and on the same criteria as is usually done.
However, there were some who claimed that these MQSs were very hard to obtain for local athletes, but despite these claims, the MOC stuck to its position. “I was not in a position to change anything in these last few weeks. I do not think it would have been fair to make any changes since I have been in the job for a short period of time, but the MOC will be assessing athletes even if the latter fail to obtain an MQS but are close to it,” he told me.
Cutajar said he feels that he is still settling down in his new post. “I have been spending at least eight hours a day. This is a very hectic period – the weeks leading to the Games for European Small States. But I must admit I had my work facilitated by those who had done the preliminary work. Otherwise it would have been impossible,” he added.
Cutajar, the former presenter of the popular TV programme l-Argument on One TV, also said he had imagined that the new post entailed such an amount of work. “However, I never imagined that some of the associations were not organised properly. I expected all to be helpful to the MOC, but I found out that this was not the case.
“I was surprised that some athletes did not know anything about the Minimum Qualifying Standards. For some associations, deadlines are non-existent, and here I will have to work harder once I settle down well in this post. I feel that throughout the years, the MOC worked hard to have a professional set up, but now it’s time that the associations will do their move towards a professional mentality”.
Cutajar also said that despite being there for only two months, (this interview was made when the athletes for the GSSE 2009 had not yet been selected in full), he felt there was a certain lack of communication between the various bodies. “I personally think the athletes have not received the message properly. At present there are associations experiencing some tension among their athletes with regard to the selection of the athletes for the Cyprus Games. This certainly did not help the athletes themselves.
“I have visited several associations during their activities and I could note that some of them were well prepared. Unluckily, others were still not well geared, although one must concede that mid-May is peaking time for some of them.
The programme for these Games always starts immediately after the previous Games come to an end. “Usually meetings are held between the MOC, athletes, coaches and federations. The MQSs are set up. Unfortunately, at the end, there is always some panic, as is the case this year, when athletes get injured because of their efforts to get the MQSs. I appreciate there are always such injuries which create psychologic difficulties for the athletes on these occasions. We, at the MOC, will keep insisting on our associations to work with a professional mentality as we do, but then, the MOC is no police department, even if some checks have to be done accordingly.
“This is my first experience at the MOC, however, in my long spell as a journalist I never remember such a long list of injuries. Most of these injuries come from athletics, and one has to do a post games analysis, hand in hand with he MAAA, so that history does not repeat itself in the future. I also want to understand after the games, how come a number of athletes who gave participated in the Monaco Games, and in many other Games, were not part of the squad. Hopefully I will manage to give answers during the summer months.”
Speaking about the administration, Cutajar said he had to meet with members of every federation, especially those involved in the Games for European Small States and the Mediterranean Games. “I have also met athletes, the medical sector as I have had meetings with the chef de mission. The MOC Executive Committee must have met a record number of times during the past two months, in fact, almost every Thursday. It is a time-consuming job, but I am doing it in the name of sport. I am proud to serve the sporting society and I expect all MOC members to do the same” he told me.
I asked Mark what would be his starting point once these Games are over. “First of all, I will look forward towards a holiday. Immediately after, my first job will be on setting up the Technical Commission, something I had promised to the associations before they elected me to this post. Together with the technical commission, we will build a three-year plan that ends at 2012 Olympic Games.”
“I also intend to give the youth sector more importance. We have to work hard here. It is the basis of Malta’s sporting future. We have to continue monitoring the best local talents to identify more potential athletes. We will work hard to try and get more funds to help the associations and the athletes in their participation in foreign competitions,” he said.
Moreover, Cutajar said he will start looking ahead for the Commonwealth Games of next year in India. “I feel that in these Games we can get good results. I am already working at the moment so that the Maltese contingent will be ready in 15 months time,” he said.
Asked about the question of Maltese athletes resident abroad, Cutajar said: I believe all those who are in possession of a Maltese passport or are resident here, have a right to represent Malta. Those who have double citizenship are no aliens trying to usurp the local athletes. In my comments as a journalist I always agreed that we should do our best to find Maltese athletes around the globe. The MOC did excellent work in the past in this regard; however, I believe that if an athlete wants to represent Malta, he or she needs to give his/her bit as well. Basketball players playing all over Europe are a good example. Another clear example is that in the sport of rugby, where the national team is abundant with Maltese players resident abroad. But they show real commitment and have brought about success to Maltese Rugby. They lead by sheer example.
“One thing which I will fight for is a change in the rule involving foreigners’ participation at the Games for European Small States. We are at a total disadvantage here, because countries like Andorra, San Marino and Monaco, at least, rely on on such foreigners to leave a good impression. Monaco alone usually have around 50 per cent of their contingent based on such foreigners. To make just a comparison, in Cyprus, we will only be having two foreigners, and that will be in basketball alone,” he said. Cutajar said he feels that such a rule is stupid and insists it must be changed. “It is not easy to change rules at GSSE as certain block votes make life difficult for Mediterranean countries,” he said.
He says that this edition in Cyprus will be a difficult one for Malta. “We know all about the value of our athletes. I am well aware they will be doing their very best. And we appreciate that it is not just about winning medals. Good performances and good results will also provide a lot of satisfactions, but I feel that the MOC has to change direction in certain technical aspects to make sure that in 2011, we will have a complete team which will be competitive in all sports disciplines,” he added.
Cutajar added: “We have to give priority to athletics and swimming – there lies the bulk of the medals at these Games. In the team events, we will continue to be hopeful, even if not every team gets the desired results. Some teams are well prepared and I have no doubt they will get the results. Others, despite being also well prepared, need some re-touching to reach certain levels. If not, it will be difficult to win medals.”
Cutajar also spoke briefly about the Mediterranean Games in Pescara to be held a fortnight after the Cyprus Games. He told me that the team for those Games will be competitive. “But the Med Games are of a completely different level. We can have some great satisfactions, especially in shooting and bowls. I also expect good performances in canoeing. However, we have to wait and see, though keeping our fingers crossed. We will also be taking part in wrestling, football, ladies basketball, golf and weightlifting, with those winning a gold medal at the Cyprus Games becoming an automatic choice for the Pescara Games.”
Finally, Cutajar appealed to all those who love sport to unite. He said: “Let us forget our ego and contribute generously for the improvement of local sport. In these days, there should be no place for rifts or disputes between athletes. Those who work voluntarily in the name of Maltese sport, deserve to be thanked and respected by one and all.
Finally he thanked all those officials, coaches, athletes and parents who spent lots of their own time to give a push to sport on this tiny Island.
Team Malta Road Show
What is called TEAM MALTA ROAD SHOW kicked off with a bang as members of Team Malta namely shooters William Chetcuti and Derek Bonanno for double-trap, Nazzareno Attard for Trap, Clive Farrugia for Skeet and William Vella and Ray Cacciattolo for Air Rifle and Air Pistol respectively, were greeted by students who attend the Lorenzo Gafà Secondary School at Vittoriosa.
Team Malta members were introduced to the attentive audience by Charles Camenzuli who gave an overview of Malta’ participation in the Games of Small States of Europe and what such participation entails.
Those present were also addressed by MOC Directors Vincent Scicluna and Adele Muscat who will be Chef de Mission and Assistant chef de Mission for Team Malta in Cyprus.
The Vittoriosa School Road Show, activity had full co-operation from Mark Bonnici and Jude Zammit, assistant heads of the school as well as Mario Bonnici who is also a leading sports presenter with OneTV.
During this first GSSE Cyprus 2009 School Road Show, those present had the opportunity to watch various features on what it means representing Malta in the GSSE as well as other promotional videos issued by the International Olympic Committee.
The Mascot of the Cyprus GSSE – Tefkros
Tefkros, also known as Teucer in English, was the son of Telamon, King of Salamis, by his wife Hesione, and half-brother to the hero of the Trojan War, Ajax. The ancient Kingdom of Salamis was located on the Saronic Gulf island of the same name, near Athens.
Tefkros was an excellent archer and highly regarded by Agamemnon, the King of Mycenae. Upon his return from Troy, Tefkros was refused entrance to Salamis by his father, who accused him of having failed to avenge the death of Ajax. Thus, Tefkros sought refuge in Cyprus with a handful of faithful followers.
As soon as he settled down, he founded a city (about 1175 BC) and built a temple to Zeus, whose ruins can still be seen today. Tefkros gave this new town the name of his childhood home, Salamis. Salamis of Cyprus, located four miles to the north of modern-day Famagusta, emerged into one of the most important ancient cities of Cyprus and flourished under King Evagoras (a descendant of Tefkros), before falling to the Romans in 306 BC.
The Mascot of the XIII Games of the Small States of Europe Cyprus 2009, a white dove representing peace and carrying the torch of the GSSE, and named Tefkros, is the brainchild of Pericles Christoforides, who also designed the official logo of the Games.
