For this crazy, athletics outdoor season, crammed as it was concretely within the summer months, with temperatures soaring and ideal preparations stunted, the best one could predict would be a statement. A tongue-in-cheek declaration that before the summer was out and with the culmination of the T & F with the National Championships, Pembroke Athleta would continue with its promise to post fresh National Records in the Books. That was PRECISELY what the Club did!
In the 100m Hurdles, Daniel Saliba continued where he left off last year in the European Second Division Championship and along the way twice bettered his record time before posting his third and best, around 15.30 seconds. Another promise along the way came from Janet Richard when earlier this summer she posted a fine 54.54 seconds in the 400m, laying down a time that practically the whole community, witnessing her powerful running, believed could be bettered. But that was before the Championships, where she turned in a magnificent performance to oust no less than Tanya Blake, a long-time Maltese shining star, an Olympic B qualifier in the 800m and holder of the 12-year old 400m national record on 54.29 seconds – of the top-notch. Not just breaking the Record, but crowning it off with a time of 54.06 seconds. Lest one should think this feat was not magnificent, one can just consult the current European Bests for this year to find Janet within the first 25 of Europe’s elite for this event. Just seeing the Maltese flag featured among the continent’s best is enough to make one’s heart miss some beats! A BIG WELL DONE to her and her coach Zeljko Aras.
Another prediction to come off was the U18 Triple Jump National Record set by Rachela Pace, clearing 11.87 meters to establish herself as the nascent star in Maltese horizontal jumping. Pembroke, rightly so, feels supreme and all its members prouder still, to form part of this success story. Focusing on the best does not mean that other members of the Club did not do well. On the contrary, from all the whole spectrum of events, Pembroke produced 11 individual and 2 relay team Champions, came second on 10 occasions and third another 7 times, both genders scoring a 1,2,3 twice each.
And this is a summary of just the OPEN category, the one that really shows the POWER of the Club. Undoubtedly the BEST T & F outfit on the Island, PROUD to wear the two GOLDEN STARS on the chest.