Rowers battle it out in Grand Harbour during Victory Day regatta races

Teams of rowers hailing from different localities across Malta will today battle it out during the Victory Day regatta races.

Participants from the cities bordering the Grand Harbour: Cospicua, Kalkara, Marsa, Marsamxett, Senglea, Vittoriosa, as well as the southern port town of Birzebbuga, will participate in ten races, divided into two different categories. Traditional types of Maltese boats, ‘frejgatini’, ‘kajjikki’ and ‘dghajjes tal-pass and tal-midalji,’ will be used in the various races.

Boats from the different clubs are marked in their respective clubs’ traditional colours (Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday)

Boats from the different clubs are marked in their respective clubs’ traditional colours: Birzebbuga’s are red, white and blue; Cospicua’s light blue, while Kalkara’s are green, Marsa’s boats, red and blue, Marsamxett’s yellow, Senglea’s red and yellow and Vittoriosa’s in all red.

The 1,040m race course is set up in the Valletta Grand Harbour where the magnificent Fort St Angelo provides an imposing backdrop to the sleek and colourful Maltese boats.

A four-man team from the Birgu Regatta Club (Photo credit: Birgu Regatta Club)

A good crowd of spectators and supporters are expected to converge along the waterfront and the surrounding bastions to watch the races. The races can be viewed from the water edge of the three cities (Birgu, Cospicua, and Senglea) or Valletta.

The regatta’s history

The regatta is a traditional rowing event in Malta with origins dating back to the Middle Ages. The first professional rowing competition was introduced in 1955.

(Photo: John Pisani/Birgu Regatta Club)

The traditional races are held twice a year.

On 31 March, they are celebrated on Freedom Day to mark the 1979 withdrawal of British troops and the Royal Navy from Malta. On 8 September, known as Victory Day, the races commemorate several historic milestones: the end of the Great Siege of Malta in 1565, the conclusion of French occupation in 1800, and the 1943 armistice with Fascist Italy, which ended the Italian bombardment of the Maltese Islands.

A photo from 1965 showing two rowers aboard a frejgatina

The boats used during the races, ‘frejgatini’, ‘kajjikki’ and ‘dghajjes tal-pass and tal-midalji’, were traditionally normal working watercraft which plied the local harbour.

Over the years these boats have evolved into racing craft with certain modifications. These are also examined and weighed before the start of and end of the races. The first three placings in each race are awarded a number of points and at the end of the regatta, the club with the highest number of points, in the respective categories, is presented with the Aggregrate Shield.

Rowers from Bormla train ahead of the regatta (Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday)

In the past small flags in different colours were tied to the forestems of racing boats for purposes of recognition. The colours were allotted by the Collector of Customs. Colours have changed considerably over the years. Today the clubs can be recognised by their traditional colours.