At age 62 most people would have long laid up their activity and opted for a mellow life. For Maltese veteran athlete Alfred Debono, of Zurrieq Wolves Athletics Club, it is a totally different story.
Celebrating his 62nd birthday next month, Debono can reflect back on a year full of athletic success much of it accomplished abroad. By far Malta’s most successful veteran athlete, Debono has carved a name for himself at international long distance events where after dominating the over 50 and also the over 55 categories for the last 10 years, he graduated for the over 60s grouping.
Typically this vintage athlete celebrated this milestone with further glory doing it with class and driven by exceptional vigour and determination.
Debono’s string of successes at local and foreign events the past season and where he claimed first place in the over 60’s category include the Malta Challenge, Florence, Zurich, Lisbon and Vienna Marathons and Zurrieq Wolves, Verona, Malta and Pisa half Marathons.
Fuelled by his recent veterans’ victories at the start of the season in the Ladies’ Running Club 10km race as well as the St Vincent De Paule’s 5km race where he has already asserted his domination, Debono has now set his sights on a challenge at international level perhaps best described as a mammoth athletic venture.
Coached by former Russian Olympic team member and mentor par excellence Ivan Roshnov, the man who spotted him and moulded him into the Spartan he is today, Alfred Debono will soon be participating in no less than then two full marathons (42.195km per marathon) and two half marathons (21.0975km per half marathon) races in a span of 4 weeks in the USA and Canada starting of with the Chicago full marathon on the 10th October he will then travel to Canada to take on the Toronto half marathon seven days later and then the Niagara falls half marathon on 24 October before returning to the US To crown his trip with a run in the famous New York marathon.
Given Debono’s dedication to the sport as well as his tenacity for competition Zurrieq Wolves are confident that he will honour the Maltese athletic community and continue to keep Malta’s flag flying high even in the above prestigious events.