A Maltese judo kata team, composed of Joe Bonello and Joe Muscat (Katame-no-Kata), Ivan Esposito and Tiziana Apap (Ju-no-Kata), and George Fabri and Ray Fava (Kime-no-Kata), have just competed in the Trofeo Kata which was staged in Sicily.

This was the last ranking event before the Italian selectors decide on the national team for the World Championships.

The Trofeo Kata was also the third appearance for the Maltese Katame-no-Kata team on the international scene.

In fact, Bonello and Muscat had represented the country for the first time at the 2009 World Championships which were hosted in Malta, scoring 345 points and placing seventh in their group.

They also accumulated 382 points at the European Championships in 2013.

In Sicily, Bonello and Muscat totalled 392 points, enough for the duo to claim the bronze medal in their category.

This was the first ever international judo kata medal won by a Maltese couple.

The winner was four-time Euro champion Andrea Fregnan and Stefano Moregola.

Fabri and Fava, who were making their second showing at this level of the sport discipline, improved their points tally to 472.

Esposito and Apap had scored 363 points at the Europeans of last year but at the Trofeo Kata they bettered their result to 386.

In a statement, the Malta Judo Federation said the results obtained in Sicily were very encouraging and a boost for the sport.

“A big thank you goes for the team and Maestro Giovanni Strazzeri who is giving tremendous support to our judokas,” the federation said.