The Malta freestyle wrestling team recently competed in an international tournament, held in Wigan, England.

The selection, under the leadership of coach Jesmond Giordimaina, included newcomer Nigel Vella, seasoned wrestlers David Galea and Adam Vella, and veteran Abraham Vassallo. Missing from the squad was Gary Giordimaina due to academic commitments.

Galea took centre-stage as he saw off five opponents on his way to winning the 74kg category.

After a good start against Robert Cardwell, Galea maintained his momentum in the second bout against Chris Stringer. Buoyed by these two victories, Galea came up against Hamza Eibyar and registered another win after administering his early advantage and defending well.

The fourth bout pitted the Maltese against Moldovan wrestler Laval Jonhavchi.

Undeterred by his opponent’s experience, Galea produced some excellent holds and defensive tactics to overcome the Moldovan.

In the final bout, against Dutch Iman Askari, Galea was in no mood to let the opportunity to claim the category slip away.

Urged by Giordimaina and supported by the rest of the Maltese contingent, Galea kept his cool to overcome the final hurdle and deservedly secure the title.

Meanwhile, Adam Vella opted to compete in the 66kg category which was unchartered territory for the Maltese wrestler. After a bright start with two wins, Vella went down to Charlie Bouling in the final and had to settle for second place.

Youngster Nigel Vella was making his debut in the international arena as the newcomer competed in the 49kg cadet category.

In his only bout in the competition, Vella had the better of Gavina Singh.

Veteran Abraham Vassallo rounded off an excellent day for Maltese wrestlers as he took to the mat in the veterans 96kg category and easily had the better of his two opponents to snatch victory and first place.