After more than one year, the Malta Weightlifting Association will participate in an international event in Russia next week. The Weightlifting European Championships, which was postponed several times since its original dates in April last year, will be held in Moscow between the 3rd and 11th of April. The Maltese contingent participating at this Olympic qualification event will be made up of two athletes and one coach. Athletes, Tenishia Thornton and Yasmin Zammit Stevens will be accompanied by national team coach Jesmond Caruana. This is the first time the MWA has two female athletes participating at the European Championships, with Thornton being the youngest ever Maltese athlete to participate being only 15 years old.
The preparation for such a major competition has had its obstacles for our Maltese athletes. With only a few weeks to go, the gyms in Malta were forced to shut down for everyone, including our national teams.
Yasmin Zammit Stevens
Therefore, the athletes have had to shift their training into their own homes as best as they could.
The 2021 European Championships will be the first major event organsied since the pandemic hit.
The EWF has listed a strict guideline of protocols that all individuals participating in these championships will have to follow.
Both athletes and coach will depart on Monday 29th to begin their journey for a new type of championships. Full timetable for dates and times of competitions will be out soon.