Drew Lang wins 38th Edition of Gozo Half Marathon

Over 340 Gozitan, Maltese and foreign athletes took part in this year's races.
This year's half marathon was won by Drew Lang in 1:18.04. Matthew Cutajar placed second (01:22.05) and Rodney Cassar placed third (01:25.11). The first lady that crossed the half marathon finish line was Jacqueline Booker (1:38.56). Following her in second place was Lisa Delia (01:43.30) and in third place Angelica Portelli (01:46.48). As the winners themselves said, this half marathon offers a number of unique challenges, mainly due to its hilly route. It is also interesting that the route takes the athletes through 6 different village squares.

Apart from the half marathon, the event also included the 8mi, 4km, 2km and 2km Fun Run. For the third consecutive year, the event included the 13.1mi mountain bike race.

The 8mi race was won by Jonathan Balzan in 44.49 followed by Fabio Spiteri 46.27 and Melvin Mifsud 47.31 respectively. Charles Cilia currently holds the record time for both 13.1mi (2006, 1:11.40 ) and 8mi races (2008, 43.14). Doreen Camilleri won the female category of the 8mi race in 55.08followed by Gianella Bugeja (58.53) and in third place Cecilia Fenech (59.09).

The Gozitans performed well in the races. First Gozitan in the 13.1mi race was Jimmy Sacco (01:28:46), followed by Frank Muscat (01:33:28) and Michael Bongailas (01:33:52). In the 8mi race, the first male was Daniel Pace (51:09), followed by Stefan Azzopardi (54:02) and Sinclair Grima (56:15). The Gozitan females 8mi category was won by Felicienne Mercieca (01:01:25), followed by Tara Vella (01:03:42) and Miriam Camilleri (01:05.00).

The 13.1 MTB was won by Roman Briquet in 48:17, followed by Silvio Grima (49.20) and Stefan Vella (51.32).
The organizers have received lots of positive feedback on the event, including comment such as "It was a brilliant event, the best so far" and "It's a killer of a route, but all in all, the rewarding feeling when crossing the finishing line was simply unique!" However, the favourite must be the following: "It has been my five year participation in a row and it still creates great inner enthusiasm to run this competitive race. This event is being well organised professionally by all the volunteers alike. It is getting a must for many runners. No competitive races avail of a hot shower afterwards. Well done!"

The Gozo Half Marathon Organizing Committee would like to thank Xaghra Local Council, its sponsors, ERRC, Malta Police Force, Xaghra Scouts Group and the large number of volunteers who helped in the organization of the event.
For a full list of results and winners one can visit http://gozomarathon.org/ViewWinners.aspx and www.facebook.com/GozoMarathon.