The ASA Swimming Time-Trials, held at the National Pool last Saturday, produced a spate of age-group records, eight in total.
Nikki Muscat broke two age-group D marks set by Talisa Pace in June last year. Muscat covered the 100m freestyle in 59.62 seconds to better Pace’s previous mark of 1:00.30.
Muscat’s landmark time in the 100 free rewarded this girl for her dedication and hard work. Having emerged as a talented backstroke swimmer, Muscat’s versatility blossomed and she is now featuring in freestyle events, particularly the two-lap race.
Saturday was the culmination of a long trek which saw her as the first home-grown girl to break the minute barrier for the first time.
In fact, this feat was achieved by two girls of Maltese descent but based abroad, Susan Smith and Madeleine Scerri, who presently holds the national record of 57.97 seconds set in the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
In the 200m individual medley, Muscat clipped over two seconds from Pace’s record of 2:33.94 as she clocked 2:31.66.
Amy Micallef also left her mark on Saturday’s meet as she established two age-group B recods in the 50m free and 200m IM. In the 50m free, Micallef produced a time of 29.88 seconds to improve her own previous mark of 30.05 seconds.
Micallef then achieved an even bigger feat as she swam the 200 IM in 2:37.11 to shatter the previous record, 2:43.13, set by Christine Cachia way back in 1996.
Another two age-group records were attained by Neil Muscat, Nikki’s younger sibling, in the age-group B 200m freestyle and 200m IM. Muscat stole the limelight when he clocked 2:17.19 to trim 5.12 seconds off Christian Gialanze’s old mark of 2:22.31, set in September 1989.
Muscat also broke Kenneth D’Ugo’s 15-year-old hold on the 200m IM age-group B record when he clocked 2:35.92. D’Ugo’s mark stood at 2:37.57.
The other two age-group records came from Michelle Azzopardi and Sarah Demicoli. Azzopardi swam the 100m butterfly in 1:18.19 to eclipse Rhea Cutajar’s old age-group B mark of 1:18.67.
For her part, Demicoli attained a new age-group A record in the 50m butterfly, clocking 38.18 seconds to lower Laura Demicoli’s previous mark of 38.20.
Meanwhile, Andrew Chetcuti set four national short course records at the Irish National Short Course Swimming Championships, held in Leisureland, Galway between November 18 and 21.
Chetcuti finished the 50m free in 23.67 seconds to better the previous record of 24.96 he held jointly with Andrea Agius. The Dubai-based Maltese swimmer also beat Neil Agius’s 100m free national record of 54.07 seconds with a new best time of 52.55.
In the 50m butterfly, Chetcuti erased David Zammit’s mark (26.62 seconds) when clocking 25.70 before going on to deliver a new record in the 100m butterfly of 57.91 seconds, eclipsing Mark Sammut’s previous mark of 58.46.
Chetcuti will form part of the ASA national swimming team for the 10th FINA World Short Course Championships, to be held in Dubai next month. The other members of the ASA squad are Neil Agius, Andrea Agius, Edward Caruana Dingli, Daniel Galea, Mark Sammut, Davina Mangion, Melinda Sue Micallef, Nicola Muscat and Talisa Pace.