The 19th Malta international Challenge marathon – spread over three days – came to an end yesterday with the third and final stage which started in St Paul’s Bay and ended in Valletta.

Maltese runners dominated both the men's and women's categories.

In the men's event, Jonathan Balzan of St Patrick's was first in 1hr 28.01 minutes. Second was Brian Magri of Pembroke Athleta while Joseph Abdilla of Zurrieq Wolves, was third. These were also the overall positions after the three stages.

In the Women's event, Marisa Muscat was first in 3hr 5.27 minutes, followed by Caroline Ciappara and Pauline Vella. The same three runners lead their category overall after the final day.

The challenge comes to an end this morning at Valletta with the runners starting from near Wignacourt Tower in St Paul's Bay at 7am.