Janet Richard. Photo: Wally Galea

With the local track and field season gaining momentum, the Matthew Micallef St John Stadium was buzzing with activity recently as athletes of all ages made the most of the Easter sojourn.

Some British athletes were present to add spice to the Challenge Series events, notably sprinting.

In the 100m for men, James Williams, from Liverpool Harriers, came home first at 10.68secs, ahead of Luke Bezzina, on 11.12, with another visitor finishing further down the line in sixth.

As expected, Williams also prevailed in the 200m. He finished ahead of Julian Mifsud, clocking 21.45 seconds in the process.

In the meantime, a string of other good results and keen competition provided spectacle, including in the 100m and 200m women’s events.

In the women open, Janet Richard fended off Sian Pledger – but only just – recording 12.46 and 25.14 seconds, respectively.

In the 5,000m, both Charlton Debono and Josann Attard Pulis confirmed their current form with excellent times of 15.33 and 18.27 minutes, respectively.

On the field, the best performances were those by Catriona Cuschieri in discus and hammer throws as well as that by Luca Martini, especially in the latter event.

Their exploits in the hammer will be up for ratification by the MAAA as new marks for athletes under the age of 18 years.

Cristina’s potential

Furthermore, another new national record to be ratified will be that achieved by the up-and-coming 13-year-old Alessia Cristina.

On this occasion, Cristina smashed the 300m recorded distance established by Nicole Gatt in 2010 in the under-14 category.

Cristina set the pace to improve the mark to 41.92 seconds which, if compared with the current times of British athletes in this event, would place her third overall among the girls of her age in the UK.