Team Malta yesterday left for Cyprus, the venue for the 2009 Games for the Small States of Europe. The contingent was bubbling with enthusiasm at the Malta International Airport, with athletes, coaches, support staff and members of the Malta Olympic Committee all seemingly excited and ready to compete, the picture on the front page demonstrates this amply. While the team has been termed young, and one of transition, they believe that this might help them register another good performance after the last round of games in Monaco in 2007.

Team Malta has a lot of debutants at these games, but there are also a few experienced heads who the younger athletes can turn to for advice and even perhaps comfort in defeat. Youth is a powerful factor, but just as it can yield positive results, it can also make the fall back down to earth harder if one does not stick to game plan, perform to levels of expectation – or quite simply, nerves. This is where the coaches and older athletes must make sure that the little talent we have is not snuffed out before it has had time to develop. We are sure that they will not disappoint.

Maltese sport is limited by our demographics – we are small and we do have a limited pool of talent, but we have registered success during these games before and we have also hosted them on two occasions. The first time Malta hosted the games since their inception in San Marino in 1985 was in 1993 and again ten years later in 2003.

San Marino 1985 saw the participation of 222 athletes in seven sporting events. The last edition of the games saw a total of 793 athletes participating in 12 disciplines.

It is proof that sporting minnows, including us, have increased our athlete turnout and that success there can also be a building platform to good individual performances on a bigger stage.

But much still needs to be done. Malta is many years behind in sports. The footballing scene has a great following, but the salaries and resources – human and financial – which clubs have access to are meager. Rugby is another sport which has a very good following and is growing in popularity season by season with children and adults taking to it as recreational sport. The article carried on the back page about the dire need for a proper pitch and small stadium, though, is ample proof that we are not doing enough.

The same goes for athletics and other sports – we do have some talented people, but sadly, the lack of funding for training, kits, treatment, and training grants just does not allow us to move on.

We must start by addressing the issue of physical training (or lack thereof) at schools. Malta must be one of the only countries in Europe where some kids get perhaps an hour a week of training. And even then, it is basic. The government has perhaps got into second gear in building facilities and even pushing it slightly at school level.

But we do need so much more. A team of world beaters we cannot be, but we can certainly improve the conditions our athletes train in and we can certainly do more for out children – we cannot preach about healthy lifestyles and not act – or not act enough. It’s an age old saying – a healthy body leads to a healthy mind and there’s nothing truer. We wish Team Malta good luck, and we hope they bring back a decent haul of medals. Dare we say it? Break a leg out there!