The Maltese Olympic Committee (MOC) is about to embark on a project that is set to boost local sport in no small measure with participation in the first ever Mediterranean Friendship Tournament in Sicily this weekend.

The tournament is a sports festival that includes various disciplines, not in the GSSE, Commonwealths or Mediterranean Games, for countries in the close region. The concept of the Med. Friendship Tournament is to strengthen ties between national federations and enhance the level of sport.

The MOC were the instigators of the tournament and had initially approached officials from the National Olympic Committees of Tunisia and Libya besides their Sicilian counterparts. The north African countries had shown great interest at first but in the end it was only Sicily who not only confirmed their participation but also pledged to host all competitions in Palermo.

The Malta contingent will be formed of 60 athletes and officials from 10 different associations, namely, badminton, dancesport, fencing, golf, karate, pool, snooker, table football, triathlon and weightlifting.

They leave the islands tomorrow, led by MOC officials Marie Therese Zammit, Laurie Pace, Anthony Chircop and Vince Scicluna.

"With this tournament we want to offer more exposure to those member associations who do not figure in other major events such as the GSSE, the Mediterranean Games or the Commonwealths," MOC president Lino Farrugia Sacco told journalists yesterday.

"Obviously, we would have liked Tunisia and Libya to be there too as their participation would have added more prestige to the tournament.

"However, they retracted during talks but we still consider the event to be an ideal occasion for our athletes to gauge their progress in their particular sport.

"In Sicily, we shall adopt the same attitude with which we compete in other major events. No doubt, we are fully committed. We want to do well and I expect our athletes to perform to the best of their ability and hopefully return with excellent results."

The MOC said there are plans in the pipeline to hold the Mediterranean Friendship Tournament on an annual basis. Discussions will start immediately after this weekend, Mr Justice Farrugia Sacco said, adding that next year's edition will be held in Malta to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the MOC. The Tunisian and Libyan Olympic Committees will be invited again.

The MOC president is hoping this week's tournament will be of great benefit to the Maltese.

"We want our associations to make the most of this tournament and, perhaps, start new ventures with others abroad," he said.

"We have to establish similar concepts with foreign federations. Regular competitions and training camps in Sicily will be of great benefit for Maltese athletes."

The contingent

Badminton: M. Camilleri, F. Vella, J. Cassar, C. Dimech, K. Vella, D. Cole.

Dancesport: A. Cassar, C. Zammit, K. Spiteri, B. Camilleri, J. Bartolo, M. Bartolo.

Fencing: J. Formosa, J. Scicluna, M. Scicluna, S. Ronald, N. Martinez, P. Bianchi.

Golf: M. Borg, H. Doering, P. Satariano, N. Borg.

Karate: A. Zammit, J. Edwards, C. Rotin, J. Abdilla, J. Galea, S. Bugeja.

Pool: V. Degiorgio, C. Cilia, C. Azzopardi, C. Attard.

Snooker: F. Bugeja, P. Galea, D. Bezzina, S. Camilleri.

Table Football: J. Zammit Pavia, H. Mallia, S. Bartolo, D. Conti.

Triathlon: I. Zarb, D. Callus, D. Spiteri, B. Magri, K. Galea.

Weightlifting: D. Saliba, J. Caruana, C. Saliba, E. Schembri, G. Cachia, N. Coleiro.