It was a positive day yesterday at the Monaco Games for most of the Maltese athletes.

For Joanna Camilleri, it was a glorious day as she struck the first gold medal of these Games for Malta in the judo field. Hers was the biggest success albeit with a little bit of luck as her opponent was forced to retire because of an injury.

And Malta was very, very close to another two gold medals which were missed by just a fracture of a second. I am referring to the silver medals won by Angela Galea (swimming) and Darren Gilford (athletics). Galea was pipped at the post at the final touch (last two metres) after having dominated the event for three of the four laps.

Gilford then ran an exceptionally good 100m dash on the track to be thwarted by the Cypriot athlete who was awarded the gold.

There were also successes for those who won the silver and bronze medals and these included Charlene Attard, Carol Walsh, Brent Law and Madeleine Scerri.

Of course, it was an eventful day yesterday with most of our athletes in action. But it was not just the medal winners who left a good impression.

Sailing provided some very encouraging and positive results which could lead to another good haul of medals in this sector later this week.

The table-tennis teams also seem to be on the right track with the men in the semi-finals after having won their opening two matches in style and with the women on the brink of reaching the semi-finals in the women’s sector.

Other encouraging results came from the tennis camp where Matthew Asciak and Elaine Genovese registered impressive wins in their first round matches to reach the quarter-finals. The two of them were making their debut in these Games and they could not have had a better start.

The major disappointment came from the other tennis player, Matija Pecotic who played badly all the way to practically hand victory to his opponent, Petros Baghdatis from Cyprus, brother of the more illustrious player.

In bowls, Malta’s two players have reached the semi-finals, and even if the San Marino pair are strong favourites for the gold, it is already another success.

The gymnastics youngsters also had their baptism of fire yesterday at these Games. Let me be honest. I never expected these inexperienced youngsters to figure at the top, but I must say that while some failed in certain disciplines, there were others who produced encouraging performances which could guarantee a brighter future for the sport in Malta.

Chef de Mission Pippo Psaila is very happy with the outcome after the first day. Although there might have been a shift in colour to his predictions of the medal haul after yesterday’s results, it is still evident that Malta has had an encouraging start.

It is now important that the athletes maintain the momentum gained yesterday so as to continue winning in the name of Malta.

Foremost among the spectators at the various venues yesterday was the Minister of Education, Dr Louis Galea, who congratulated the successful athletes.

At the Stade Louis II, one interested spectator was the Sovereign Prince Albert of Monaco, a former president of the Monaco Olympic Committee.