Watch: Impressive performances by Maltese lifters at IWF World Junior Championships

The Malta Weightlifting Association was recently represented by three athletes at the IWF Junior World Championships that were held in Guadalajara in Mexico.

The Maltese contingent was formed by Tenishia Thornton, Rylee Borg and Kim Camilleri Lagana who all managed to return home with a commendable result.

Camilleri Lagana was the first on stage among the Maltese contingent. She had a good performance in the 45A category, lifting 58kg in Snatch and a best lift of 75kg in the Clean and Jerk category to finish in 10th position.

Tenishia Thornton had a very strong start in the 64B category. 

In the Snatch leg, she lifted 82kg, moving to 85kg and closing successfully with 87kg which placed her in third place.

Thornton also broke the Malta junior and senior national records.

In the Clean and Jerk, Thornton started confidently when lifting 102kg, but she missed the 105kg attempt due to a press out on her left elbow.

This competition was very important for Thornton as it represented for her the perfect preparation to reach her peak for the Olympic qualification event which will be held in Doha in less than three weeks. 

The Maltese athlete to compete in these championships was Rylee Borg.

Competing in the category 81B, Borg had a stellar performance.

He opened the snatch at 108kg, and although he missed the 111kg attempt he went on to complete successfully his lift at 112kg.

In the Clean and Jerk category, he opened at 135kg and moved to 139kg.

Borg had a close challenge with a Croatian lifter but managed to prevail when he successfully completed a 142kg lift.

For Borg, this was an impressive display as he managed to attain a personal best on his overall total by eight kilogrammes while he also managed to break all national records in the 81kg youth and junior categories.

In Guadalajara, the team was under the charge of of MWA president and national team coach Jesmond Caruana.

The participation of the MWA contingent was possible through the support of the Maltese Olympic Committee, SportMalta, IWF, and EWF.