Three of Malta’s top female weightlifters will be heading to Slovenia next week for a two week training camp with Slovenia’s national team coach, Damjan Canzek. Along with President of the Malta Weightlifting Association, Jesmond Caruana, athletes Yazmin Zammit Stevens, Elisia Scicluna and Shelby Mangion Vassallo are all currently preparing for international competitions in the near future, with the World University Games coming up first this August.
Zammit Stevens will be representing the University of Malta on the World Stage in Taipei at what will be her biggest competition yet. She is set to compete in the 63kg category on the 22nd of August against some of the World’s top athletes. Despite it being a very tough competition, she is aiming for big results in hopes of qualifying for next years Commonwealth Games in Australia. The training camp in Slovenia was especially planned prior to the World University Games to ensure Yazmin is in top shape for the competition.
The training camp will be a first for the youngest of the three athletes, 14 year old Shelby Mangion Vassallo, who will be preparing for the European Youth Championships that are to be held in Kosovo. The championships are of special importance as it is a qualification event for the Youth Olympic Games.
Elisia Scicluna, who has recently come back to competition after a minor operation in her knee, will also be benefitting from the training camp as part of her preparation towards the Mediterranean Cup to be held in Slovenia later on this year. Despite being fresh out of her recovering phase from injury, Scicluna has shown great determination and consistency in her lifts, lifting a solid total in her last national competition.
The athletes will be accompanied by the President of the Association and Malta’s national team coach, Jesmond Caruana, who will be attending a coaching weightlifting seminar prior to the training camp.
This incredible step forward in athlete preparation for international meets would not have been possible without the continuous help from the Malta Weightlifting Association, the Malta Olympic Committee and SportMalta.