14 year old Tenishia Thornton made National Weightlifting history this past weekend by not only being the first Maltese youngster to compete at the U15 European Championships, but also break European U15 records in the process. Thornton, who finished 5th in Snatch and 6th overall at these championships in Eilat, managed a huge 56kg personal best snatch in the 45kg category. After easily lifting 52kg on her 1st attempt, she went on to make 54kg on her second which was, at the time being, a European Record in the U15 45kg category. Her 56kg third attempt improved on that European record before it was broken again.
She went on to make her 2nd attempt clean and jerk at 68kg, which was good enough to finish in 5th place overall at this major international event. Her impressive result broke 14 national records in the U15, U17, Junior and senior categories. This was Thornton's final competition in what was an incredible 2019 for the youngster. She managed to steadily improve her result throughout the year and has now become one of the household names in the sport of weightlifting. With 2020 round the corner, Thornton will now be preparing for an important year ahead.
Thornton was accompanied by national team coach Jesmond Caruana at these championships. The MWA thanks the Maltese Olympic Committee and Sport Malta for their continuous effort in helping their athletes compete on the international stage.