Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club hosted their penultimate race of the 2024 BSJ Go & Fun Triathlon Series in Salina on Sunday morning. The event saw a large attendance for both the Sprint and Olympic Distances, attracting a diverse group of veteran and new triathletes to the community.
Olympic Distance Race
Keith Galea continued his winning streak, although he did not surpass his record-breaking performance from the previous race. He maintained his lead throughout, exiting the 1500m swim a minute ahead of Adam Jones, who was followed by Ramon Calleja. On the 40km bike course, made more challenging due to windy conditions, Galea registered the fastest bike split before proceeding to the 10km run. He crossed the finish line first with a comfortable lead over second-placed Josef Azzopardi and Jurgen Casha, who made his debut in this series.
In the females’ category Lindsey Pirotta also maintained a comfortable gap ahead of Daphne Gatt and Miriam Borg Saydon. Gatt who is also a newcomer to the series registered the fastest run segment of the morning. She finished in second placed followed by Miriam Borg Saydon who made a welcome return to the local racing circuit.
Sprint Distance Race
Kai Azzopardi continued his series of victories in the sprint triathlon race. Finishing the 750 swim segment first, he was followed by Ryan Muscat and Bernard Farrugia – the latter only 2 seconds behind Muscat. On the 20km bike route, Azzopardi continued to maintain his lead, though it was Roberto Briffa and Christian Anastasi with the fastest bike splits of the day. Nevertheless, Azzopardi continued to keep a good gap to maintain his lead on the 5km run and to take another win to his name. Ryan Muscat crossed the finish line behind Azzopardi, followed by Roberto Briffa.
Maya Schembri Rodgers took the win on Sunday, having taken the lead from the start exiting the water ahead of second placed Pia Grech and Keira Attard. These placings were maintained in the bike and run segment, though it was Attard who registered the fastest run split in this category.
In the Relay Teams Category, the team made up of Roanna Farrugia and Max Bessonn took the honours.
Medals to the top three male and female winners in both the Olympic and Sprint Distance races were presented by Mr. Luis Coira Nieto – Europe Triathlon Technical Delegate and Ms. Alicia Garcia – Europe Triathlon Treasurer who were present for the race to report back to their respective organisations in view of the upcoming international events held locally in September.
“The Club was thrilled to host such a well attended race on Sunday. It is always satisfying to see the triathlon community growing and thriving. Well done to all participants and we hope to see them again for the final race on the 2nd June” commented Raymond Grech, President, Birkirkara St. Joseph Sports Club. “Hosting European Triathlon representatives at our race was significant for the Club, as we anticipate receiving invaluable feedback in the coming weeks. This will provide us with a great opportunity to enhance the race day experience.”
The final race of the BSJ Go & Fun Triathlon Series will take place on Sunday 2nd June in Salina, starting at 7:30 a.m.
Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club would like to thank Go & Fun for supporting the Series, Naxxar Local Council and District Police as well as all the officials, medical staff and volunteers who helped on the day.
BSJ Go&Fun Triathlon Series – Race 3 Results
| Olympic Distance | Sprint Distance | |||
| Male | Female | Male | Female | |
| 1st | Keith Galea (2:09:33) | Lindsey Pirotta (2:40:23) | Kai Azzopardi (1:01:09) | Maya Schembri Rodgers (1:13:10) |
| 2nd | Josef Azzopardi (2:18:14) | Daphne Gatt ( 2:49:19) | Ryan Muscat (1:04:11) | Pia Grech (1:14:49) |
| 3rd | Jurgen Casha (2:19:19) | Miriam Borg Saydon (2:58:22) | Roberto Briffa (1:04:55) | Keira Attard (1:15:09) |