One of the leading clubs in Malta, Pembroke Athleta, will be hosting the first European Athletics Promotion meeting in Malta next Saturday.

It is to be held at the newly laid out track at the Matthew Micallef St John Athletics Stadium at Marsa.

Club president Victor Camilleri said yesterday Pembroke will be writing a new chapter in their history with the staging of this international meeting.

Around 57 foreigners and 142 local athletes are registered to take part in the event which will consist of disciplines for men, women and youths.

The foreign athletes will be coming over from 18 different countries that include Denmark, Netherlands, Sicily, Italy, Hungary, Belgium, France, Switzerland, England, Spain, Portugal, Northern Ireland and Latvia.

Camilleri added that the event is being sanctioned by the Malta Amateur Athletics Association. In actual fact, he added, with his club securing such a competition in this period each year, the competition will serve all hopefuls for the Games for European Small Nations in good stead, as they will be able to hone their skills in the appropriate time. "Some may also take the opportunity to qualify by reaching the qualifying standards set for participation in the Games," he said.

Camilleri went on to say that it had invited all local athletes to take part and not just club members. "We also hope that in future, there will be many more foreigners taking part although we were taken completely by surprise by the number that applied for this year's event," he added.

The programme on Saturday will consist of 22 disciplines for Seniors and another 10 for the Youths. Thirty five qualified officials will be assisted by 90 volunteers in the hope of having a smooth running of the meeting.

The club president thanked all the sponsors without whose support such an event could not be organised. Among them were the Parliamentary Secretariat for Sport and Youth, SportMalta, the Malta Tourism Authority and the MAAA which is affording the club its facilities and equipment apart from providing human resources.

Camilleri announced that admission for the Saturday meeting at Marsa will be free.

MTA Chairman Dr Gavin Gulia said he was pleased that the club was able to get these foreigners to take part in their event. He said such an event formed part of sports tourism niche, and as such, he was glad the MTA will be helping Pembroke Athleta, as it had helped other sports bodies in the past.

Norman Saliba, on behalf of the organisers, said Pembroke had become a member of the European Athletics Promotion circuit last November.

Such a meeting will help local athletes in the sense that they will have another chance to compete against foreign athletes of a certain calibre without having to pay to go abroad. "Seventeen such meetings are being held in Europe every year. They can apply with Pembroke Athleta to take part in any of them as like this one here, the organising club foots accommodation costs and part of the travel expenses for a number of athletes from its member clubs," he said.