Coach’s great contribution to athletics

The Malta Amateur Athletic Association council was deeply saddened and shocked by the sudden death of John Walsh and would like to pay tribute to the contribution he made to local athletics.

Mr Walsh started off in the early 1980s as an athlete. In 1986 he was one of the founder members of the Malta Marathon Organising Committee and unto his death he was still a member of this committee.

As a member of the MMOC he played an important part in the organisation of the Malta marathon and half-marathon, a highly popular international road race which is held every February; he was also one of the main organisers of the classic December event known as the Mdina-Spinola Road Race.

In 1996 after obtaining his IAAF coaching certificate, Mr Walsh set out on a long coaching career and coached a large number of long-distance runners. His star athlete was Carol Walsh (his wife) who won several medals at 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres in different editions of the Games of the Small States of Europe. Under Mr Walsh’s guidance, Ms Walsh also won a silver medal in the marathon in the 1997 Mediterranean Games.

Mr Walsh coached other national team athletes including Lisa Marie Camilleri, who in the 2011 Small Nations Games won silver in the women’s 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres.

Mr Walsh was also a regular contributor to The Times. In his articles he encouraged several readers to start running and through his advice and schedules he popularised the sport of long-distance running in Malta.

The MAAA council gives its condolences to his wife together with his family and friends.