Maltese triathletes Graham Borg and Josef Bonavia have made history at IRONMAN 70.3 Belgrade after finishing second and third respectively in the M45-49 age category.
The result saw the pair become the first two Maltese athletes to share an IRONMAN 70.3 podium in the same race, with just 46 seconds separating them at the finish.
Silver And A New Personal Best For Graham Borg
Borg secured second place with a new personal best of 4:16:06 across the 1.9 km swim, 90 km bike and 21.1 km run.
He emerged from the swim in third place in his age group with a time of 27:58 before producing the fastest M45-49 bike split of the race.
Borg completed the 90 km bike course in 2:13:09, averaging 40.62 km/h. That performance moved him into first place in his age category, a position he maintained through the 8.9 km checkpoint of the run.
He completed the half marathon in 1:27:58 to secure silver and his second IRONMAN 70.3 podium, following a previous second-place finish in 2017.
The result was particularly significant for Borg after returning to competition following a long break. His previous personal best had been set in August 2018.
Josef Bonavia Charges Through The Field For Bronze
Bonavia finished third in 4:16:52, only 46 seconds behind his fellow Maltese athlete.
After leaving the water seventh in his age group, Bonavia made progress on the bike, completing the 90 km course in 2:13:54 at an average of 40.39 km/h.
His strongest performance came during the half marathon. Bonavia completed the 21.1 km run in 1:23:45, averaging exactly 4:00 min/km and recording the fastest running split in the M45-49 category.
The run moved him from sixth position into third, securing his place alongside Borg on the podium.
Just 46 Seconds Separate The Maltese Pair
The two performances came through contrasting strengths. Borg built his advantage through the swim and particularly the bike, where his split was 45 seconds faster than Bonavia’s.
Bonavia responded on the run, completing the half marathon four minutes and 13 seconds faster than Borg and closing the gap considerably over the final discipline.
Ultimately, Borg’s advantage was enough to secure silver in 4:16:06, with Bonavia taking bronze in 4:16:52.
Both athletes have represented Malta internationally for many years and have experience across both IRONMAN 70.3 and full IRONMAN distances.
Sharing the same age-category podium in Belgrade now gives Maltese endurance sport a landmark international result, with two Maltese flags represented among the top three at the same IRONMAN event.
