Top three... Keith Galea (centre), Graham Borg (left) and Fabio Spiteri stand on the podium in Birżebbuġa.

There were few changes to the men’s and women’s podiums in the second race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Sports Club Sprint Triathlon Series.

The race, held in very challenging weather conditions in Birżebbuġa, saw Birkirkara SJ athlete Keith Galea better his own course record by one minute and 33 seconds to secure first place once again.

In the women’s category, it was Pembroke Athleta’s Hannah Pace who registered her second win in a row.

The heat encountered after the previous day’s downpour was mitigated in the swim segment but the temperatures increased substantially throughout the morning so much that it had an effect on most of the run times registered.

With calm waters welcoming the athletes for the swim segment, it was Birkirkara SJ athletes, undertaking the full distance, who claimed the first three places, the first being Keith Galea (10 minutes, 14 seconds), Graham Borg (10 minutes 18 seconds) and Dermot Galea (11 minutes 15 seconds).

The lack of wind contributed to quite a few athletes recording improved timings on the bike route.

The 20km loop is considered a technical one with hills, downhills and stretches of flat road in addition to a sharp turn around.

Once again, Borg dominated the cycling circuit, finishing eight seconds ahead of team-mate Keith Galea.

Fabio Spiteri came in third.

The 5km run along the Birżebbuġa coast was held in very hot and humid conditions which slowed down most of the athletes. Nevertheless Keith Galea still managed to achieve a better overall time than the previous race to collect his second victory in one hour 54 seconds.

Borg was second, recording the same time as the previous race, one hour two minutes and 42 seconds.

Spiteri’s third place in one hour four minutes and 50 seconds completed the podium which remained unaltered from the previous race.

In the female section, Pembroke Athleta’s Pace exited the water first in a time of 10 minutes 22 seconds, 29 seconds faster than the previous race.

Hot on her heels was Mellieħa AC’s Margaret Seguna who improved her swim by four seconds.

With Birkirkara SJ triathlete Michelle Vella Wood competing in her first Pro Ironman 70.3 in Gdynia, Poland, it was clear from the start that Pace and Seguna were likely to compete for the top two places on the podium.

Third female was Colombian Mirtha Redpe who came out of the water in 12 minutes 44 seconds.

The cycling segment was dominated by Pace, followed by Seguna.

Birkirkara SJ’s Suzanne Farrugia showed good strength on the bike to enter transition after Seguna in 41 minutes 29 seconds.

The run segment was a tough affair but it was Pace who made sure of her second victory in as many races in a time of one hour eight minutes and 56 seconds.

Seguna finished second in a time of one hour 11 minutes and six seconds, recording a substantial improvement in her timings.

It was also interesting to note that both Pace and Seguna attained a sub-11 minute swim, the first to do so on this course.

Redpe placed third overall after completing the race in 1 hour 18 minutes two seconds.

Relay event

The race also saw six relay teams taking part.

Jean Claude Cutajar (swim), Steve Sciberras (bike) and Andrew Grech (run) secured first place for the second race running.

The team completed the course in 59 minutes and 19 seconds, an 18-second improvement on the opening leg.

Second placed went to Luke Camilleri Cuschieri, Pierre Borg and Matthew Rota while the third team was made up of Zach Cutajar, Wayne Spiteri and Barry Farrugia.

Cutajar, Wayne Cuschieri and Grech registered the fastest splits in their respective categories.

The next race of the Birkirkara St Joseph Sprint Triathlon Series will be held on September 13.