Team Malta enjoyed one of its busiest and most positive days so far at the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, with Maltese athletes producing encouraging performances across five different sports.
The day included a personal best, a new national weightlifting record, a historic gymnastics result and qualification for an athletics semi-final.
Roberta Tabone finishes fifth with personal best
Weightlifter Roberta Tabone secured Team Malta’s best placing of the Games so far, finishing fifth in her category with a personal-best total of 204kg.
The 31-year-old successfully lifted 86kg and 89kg in the snatch before narrowly missing her third attempt at 91kg.
She followed that with successful clean and jerk lifts of 110kg and 115kg, although her final attempt at 117kg was unsuccessful.
Her overall performance placed her just outside the medal positions.
National record for Tenishia Thornton
Tenishia Thornton also produced a strong display in the women’s 69kg category.
She opened the snatch competition with a successful lift of 90kg. After missing 93kg on her second attempt, Thornton returned to complete the lift on her third try, setting a new national record.
In the clean and jerk, she successfully lifted 114kg but was unable to complete either of her two attempts at 117kg.
Thornton finished with a total of 207kg, earning seventh place.
Encouraging performance from Rylee Borg
Rylee Borg competed in the men’s 88kg category, recording a total of 295kg and finishing eighth.
His performance included a 129kg lift in the snatch.
As the youngest weightlifter in his group, Borg’s result provided another encouraging sign for his future at international level.
Philippa Busuttil makes Maltese gymnastics history
Philippa Busuttil delivered another standout result for Malta in the women’s Balance Beam final.
Competing against gymnasts with Olympic and World Championship experience, Busuttil initially received a score of 12.700.
That score was increased to 12.800 following a successful inquiry, moving her into sixth place.
She finished only 0.2 points away from the podium in a final featuring athletes from Australia, Canada, England, Singapore and Wales.
The result also marked the first time that a Maltese gymnast reached a Commonwealth Games apparatus final.
Jared Micallef reaches 800m semi-finals
There was more good news on the athletics track as Jared Micallef secured a place in the Men’s 800m semi-finals.
Micallef produced a composed performance in his heat, finishing fifth in a time of 1:46.99.
He is scheduled to return to the track on Thursday, 30 July, at 8:45pm Malta time, as he attempts to qualify for the final.
Matthew Galea Soler also competed in a demanding Men’s 400m heat featuring several Olympians, finishing with a time of 47.38 seconds.
Sasha Gatt competes in 800m freestyle
In swimming, Sasha Gatt took part in the Women’s 800m Freestyle heats.
The Maltese swimmer clocked a time of 8:56.85, finishing third in her heat.
Narrow defeat for Malta’s lawn bowls pair
Connie Rixon began strongly against Emily Jim of the Cook Islands in the Women’s Singles.
Malta won several of the opening ends, but Jim scored three on the final end of the first set to take it 5–4. She then carried that momentum into the second set, winning 9–6.
In the Men’s Pairs, Shaun Parnis and Troy Lorimer produced a determined fightback against Malaysia’s Amirul Abdul Rahim and Mohammad Soufi Rusli.
The Maltese pair conceded five shots in the opening end but recovered well, narrowly losing the first set 6–5.
They responded by winning the second set 4–3, forcing the match into a tie-break.
Malta appeared to be holding three shots in the deciding end, but Rusli changed the situation with an excellent drive from his first bowl. Parnis tried to recover with his remaining bowls, but Malaysia held on to claim the victory.
More Maltese athletes return to action
Team Malta’s programme continues on Wednesday, 29 July.
Claire Azzopardi and Graham Pellegrini are due to compete in the Women’s and Men’s 200m heats respectively.
Later in the day, Shaun Parnis and Troy Lorimer will continue their Men’s Pairs lawn bowls campaign against Wales.
Tuesday’s performances offered plenty of encouragement, with Maltese athletes continuing to compete strongly against some of the Commonwealth’s leading sporting nations.
Credit: Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Mattia Ozbot / Lintao Zhang / Getty Images
