Trap shooter James Galea shares top spot with Olympic medallist Berti after opening day

Strong start from Maltese sailors after first races

There was an encouraging start for Malta in the trap competition as clay shooting sport got under way at the 2023 GSSE.

On Tuesday, the ten participating shooters in the trap even targeted the opening 75 clays and here Malta’s James Galea is sharing top spot with Olympic bronze medallist Gian Marco Berti, of San Marino, on 73 points.

Luxembourg’s Lyndon Sosa is currently third on 72 points.

On the other hand, Emanuel Bugeja, Malta’s other shooter in the competition is in sixth place on 70 clays, and holding the last berth in the final.

The trap shooters will be in action this morning when they face the final 50 clays with the top six progressing to the finals.

On the other hand, Maltese sailors enjoyed a very positive start in the sailing competitions that were affected by te light wind conditions on the day.

In the Optimist Senior class, Malta have been the dominant force in both the men’s and women’s category.

In fact, Timmy Vassallo is leading the standings with 4.0 penalty points, just one ahead of Jonas Micallef while Isaac Azzopardi (10pts) and Jacob Azzopardi complete a Maltese sweep in the top four positions.

In the girls competition, Emily Fenech is leading the way on five points, three clear of team-mate Katrina Briffa with Cypriot Michaella Georgiou completing the podium positions on eight points.

In the ILCA 4 class, Jake Mallia is second in the men’s event on seven points, three adrift of Monaco’s Noah Garcia while Ioannisq Miltiadous, of Cyprus, is third on 14 points.

Katrina Micallef has put a strong shift in the women’s class as she is leaidng the way on 11 points, four clear of team-mate Mia Busuttil, while Andriani Georgiu is third on 19 points.

Monaco’s Bodhi Van topped the standings in the ILCA 6 class on two penalty points, to finish ahead of Cypriot duo Georgios Yiasemides and Charis Nikolaou.

The girls competition is led by Marilena Makri, of Cyprus, with one point ahead of San Marino’s Lucrezia Ricci with Malta’s Lacey Aquilina standing in third place.