Rodmar Pulis during one of his lifts at the European tournament for small nations.The national team representing the country at the 38th European Small Nations weightlifting tournament returned home satisfied following a creditable performance in Cyprus.
The squad was classified third in the final rankings in a meet that also saw the participation of the host country, Monaco, Luxemburg, Iceland and special guests Israel.
The Maltese side was composed of Pamela Psaila, Yazmin Zammit Stevens, Kyle Micallef, Rodmar Pulis and Ryan Agius.
In the women’s meet, Psaila lifted a total of 143kgs and established three new national marks as Zammit Stevens had 145kgs in total, breaking five Malta records in the process.
Their combined efforts meant an accumulated 380 points, finishing third in the final rankings, a few points behind meet runners-up Iceland.
The women’s competition was won by Cyprus. The Monaco and Luxemburg girls finished behind Psaila and Zammit Stevens in that order.
The men’s team also finished third in the classification as Micallef, Pulis and Agius managed 937 points between them.
Cyprus won this category as well thanks to their joint 1,130 points. Iceland were again second with 995 points.
Luxembourg finished behind Malta in the final rankings and Monaco placed fifth.
During the competition, Micallef lifted a total of 271kgs, breaking the Malta snatch record in the 94kg category. The previous best mark had stood for 12 years.
Pulis also had outstanding results in Cyprus and, boosted by his fine showing at the Mediterranean Cup a few weeks back, he will be aiming to seal a berth in the Rio Olympics at the upcoming Euro Championships in Norway.
In Cyprus, the squad was led by national coach Jesmond Caruana.
During the meet, he also found time to have meetings with his peers regarding future collaborations and projects, including the possibility of Malta hosting next year’s tournament for small nations.
The team’s participation in Cyprus was made possible through the support of the Maltese Olympic Committee and SportMalta.