As competitions for clubs at Marsa are slowly bringing the domestic season to an end, the international calendar is gra-dually building up to its major events, culminating in the World Championships in South Korea at the end of August.

This season has already proved to be exceptional for Athletics Malta following the exploits at the Games of the Small States of Europe in Liechtenstein and the European Team Championships held in Iceland last month.

Two very promising sprinters will now be representing the country at the U-23 European Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic, this week.

Owen Camilleri will be running the 200m. He had recorded some fast times as a younger athlete but unfortunately had a few below-par seasons only to bounce back this year, posting a new personal best in the 200m (21.90) and winning a GSSE bronze.

Camilleri also formed part of the 4x100m relay team that won silver.

In Ostrava, Diane Borg, now a household name in Maltese sport, will be participating in both the 100m and 200m.

She won a silver medal in the 100m, a gold in the 200m and was a member of the 4x100m relay team at the GSSE. Her results have been remarkable this year, dipping for the first time under the 12-second and 25-second barriers in the 100m and 200m respectively.

Borg’s best results of 11.89 and 24.27, both set in the GSSE, are new national records.

She also managed two individual third places at the European Team Championships and was a member of the 4x100m quartet that finished third in the event.

The U-23 championships, star-ting today, will feature two European greats with Frenchman Christophe Lemaitre in the 200m race and fellow countryman Teddy Tamgho in the triple jump.