Cassar, Bezzina triumph in Road Running Series with national record performance

Mellieħa and Pembroke Athleta are the new Malta club champions

Mellieħa AC’s Dillon Cassar and Pembroke Athleta’s Lisa Marie Bezzina triumphed in this year’s Road Running Series winning the fourth and final race in spectacular fashion, with both athletes establishing a stunning new national record in the process.

Malta’s Road Running Series, hosted by Athletics Malta after a two-year hiatus, came to an end in an exciting fashion with the Marsascala 5k, with all honours still up for grabs.

Dillon Cassar completed his third win from four races with a  new national record of 14:41, six seconds ahead of Luke Micallef whose impressive race establishes the second fastest-ever timing locally.

With one win and three second places, Micallef took second spot in the overall series. Simon Spiteri (St Patrick’s) was third in the final race and overall classification.

The women’s series came to an end in extraordinary fashion with Lisa Maria Bezzina defeating the odds and claiming top spot in the final race for her second victory over four races.

Evolve’s Roberta Schembri, the winner of the two other races, took second place overall after her third place in Marsascala. Joelle Cortis, who pipped Schembri to second place in the final 5k, settled for the final place on the podium.

For veteran athlete Bezzina, coached by Ivan Rozhnov, the 5k win came in a 17:15 time, meaning that she has established a new national record on the distance.

Besides these top performances, a number of age category marks were also achieved in this final race, records which are now considered as official given that the national association secured international recognition and certification of the route.

The completion of the four legs also established Malta’s new club champions, with Mellieħa AC and Pembroke Athleta taking the honours in the male and female categories respectively.

Following the completion of the series, Malta’s elite athletes now turn their focus on the track for their final preparations towards GSSE 2023.