William Chetcuti and Diane Borg were yesterday honoured as the country’s top performers for a second successive year after topping the vote in their respective contests during the 2012 SportMalta Awards – L-Għazliet Sportivi Nazzjonali, at the MFCC, Ta’ Qali, last night.
The announcements were made during a presentations night, again hosted by Kunsill Malti għall-Isport in conjunction with the Għaqda Ġurnalisti Sport, in the presence of Parliamentary Secretary for Sport Clyde Puli and former Italy and Juventus striker Salvatore Schillaci, the guest of honour.
Sportswriters association members voted for the winners in the sportsman and sportswoman awards. The results clearly indicated that there was a strong preference for those who represented the country at the 2012 Olympics in London as the contests were won by two personalities who were in Team Malta at the London Games.
Double trap shooter Chetcuti, who placed ninth at the Olympics and took a silver medal in a World Cup shoot in the US, was named as Malta’s Sportsman of the Year for a second successive year and an impressive ninth time in his career.
However, the outcome was close as Chetcuti’s 233 votes was just six better off than drag racing champion Manty Bugeja while boxer Billy Corito was third on 191.
Borg, who became the first Maltese track and field athlete to pass a round in the 100m race in Olympic Games, was an outright winner in her category with a commanding 261 votes.
Triathlete Danica Bonello Spiteri placed second on 212 votes while third place went to tenpin bowling veteran Sue Abela on 196.
Bugeja made up for his partial upset of missing out on the Sportsman of the Year title by such a narrow margin after Mr Whippy, the team he race for aty the FIA European Championship last year, were named as the Team of the Year.
In the journalists’ vote, Mr Whippy finished ahead of the rugby national team, the 2011 winners, while the bowling national team were third.
There was also one other title for Bugeja as the prestigious SportMalta Award went to the drag racing champion in a more complex vote that also had the participation of the public and an adjudicating panel, headed by Fr Hilary Tagliaferro.
Meanwhile, rugby coach Damien Neill went one better than last year after being named Official of the Year.
Welshman Neill, who led the national team to a top-50 ranking in the International Rugby Board list in 2012, was second behind Julian Pace Bonello last year. However, this time he topped the poll with 243 votes, ahead of shooting coach Jimmy Bugeja (203) and weightlifting’s Jesmond Caruana (194).
Nathan Lee Xuereb completed a double for the Malta Shooting Sport Federation yester-day as he was named Malta’s brightest U-17 prospect for a second year running.
Other special awards went to Philip Gruppetta, who represented the country in the Special Olympics, and Matthew Sultana, Malta’s sole representative at the 2012 Paralympic Games.
Awards list 2012
SportMalta Award
Manty Bugeja (motoring)
Sportsman of the Year
1. W. Chetcuti (shooting) - 233
2. M. Bugeja (motoring) - 227
3. B. Corito (boxing) - 191
4. S. Camilleri (waterpolo) - 176
5. E. Bonello (cycling) - 161
Sportswoman of the Year
1. D. Borg (athletics) - 261
2. D.B. Spiteri (triathlon) - 212
3. S. Abela (bowling) - 196
4. C. Sultana (squash) - 178
5. L. Galea (karate) - 142
Team of the Year
1. Mr Whippy (motoring) - 265
2. Rugby (men’s team) - 249
3. Bowling (mixed) - 176
4. Skeet (shooting) - 157
5. Squash (women) - 143
Official of the year
1. D. Neill (rugby) - 243
2. J. Bugeja (shooting) - 203
3. J. Caruana (w’lifting) - 194
4. P. Valentino (sailing) - 175
5. E. Galea (judo) - 174
U-17 award
1. N.L. Xuereb (shooting) - 264
2. N. Gatt (athletics/w’lifting) - 218
3. G. Dingli (karting) - 181
4. J. Harding (swimming) - 179
5. F. Aufieri (judo) - 154