A Fontana resident last weekend became the first Gozo athlete to successfully complete an Ironman circuit. 

Michael Bongailas, 30, achieved his lifelong dream when he completed the Ironman Maastricht - Limburg race in 10 hours and 33 minutes, finishing among the race's top 10 per cent of athletes. 

Mr Bongailas waves to the crowd at the start of his 42.2km Ironman run.

The race involved a 3.8km swim, 180km bicycle ride in pelting rain and 42.2km run, and saw more than 2,000 athletes from across the globe compete. It is the only Ironman event during which athletes cross borders, with the race beginning in the Netherlands and ending in Belgium. 

"Cycling was especially treacherous," Mr Bongailas told Times of Malta. "There were several slippery downhill sections, and in fact that section cost me a lot of time. But thankfully I made up for it with a solid run and swim," he said. 

Preparations for the race were further complicated by the fact that Gozo does not have its own public pool, something Gozo-based athletes like Mr Bongailas have long been wishing for. 

Mr Bongailas employed his own trainer and nutritionist in the run-up to the race, and the entire event ended up costing him a pretty penny. 

Mr Bongailas is expected to return to Malta tomorrow. 

Locals to compete at World Ironman Championships

Local athlete David Galea will take part in this coming September's World Ironman Championship, an annual event that is the culmination of a series of Ironman triathlon qualification races held across the globe. 

Fellow athletes Hannah Pace and Rudolph Agius will compete in the Ironman 70.3 World Championships, to be held on Queensland's Gold Coast in eastern Australia. in six weeks' time. 

Mr Agius described qualification as "a dream come true", but added that he was not resting on his laurels. 

"I am not going out to Australia feeling accomplished. I know I will have to face some of the world's toughest long-distance triathletes and I want to be on top to make the performance of a lifetime," he said.