#33: European Kids/Cadets Championships: ITL Athletes Record Historic Performance
A few years ago, not many would have thought Malta could tear it up on the European stage. But two young kids, three cadets, and two coaches had something to say about that.
National athletes Dwayne Micallef (7) and Emma Law Lautier (8) returned from the first-ever European Kids Championships in Belgrade (Serbia) as champion and vice-champion in their respective categories.
As for our cadets, three Maltese athletes bagged wins against Germany and Slovenia, and suffered narrow losses against Greece, Serbia and Azerbaijan (with the latter two registered as the number 1 seed).
The team was led by MTA President Anna Vassallo and Coaches Gianluca Barbara (ITL) and Ditmir Vodinaj (National Coach/ITL).
Let’s give you the low-down.
European Kids Championships
Two kids represented Malta on the day. Dwayne Micallef (Male, -21 kg) and Emma Law Lautier (Female, -24kg). Both Iron Taekwondo League athletes. Because of their age, they had to be registered in the pre-cadet B class of the tournament, with the A registered for older athletes.
Starting in the semi-final, Dwayne Micallef hit the mat first. He won against an Azeri title contender Nadr Pashayev (who won against home team Serbia in the round prior) with a convincing 2:0 score.
Dwayne then advanced to the final, where he faced Swiss player Ajan Krasniqi, who emerged the victor over three other opponents (Serbia, Moldova and Ukraine).
In the final match, Dwayne won the first round with a great margin, then capitalized with a win in the second round… and with a point-gap finish. Gold for Malta.
Emma Law Lautier also started in the semi-final round. She faced Slovenia and won both rounds with a twelve-point gap.
She later faced Ukraine’s Kateryna Korsak, who bested her Serbian opponent in her own respective semi.
It was a high-paced, high-scoring encounter, but it was Korsak who got the better of the Maltese in the first round. Nevertheless, Emma fought hard and claimed a second-round win.
With all to play for in the final round, the two locked horns again. Emma held a significant lead for the majority of the minute-long round. Yet as fatigue set in, Korsak bagged a couple of well-placed body shots in the final seconds, clinching the win in the final seconds of the game.
Emma became Malta’s second European medalist, earning a silver for Malta.
This marked a historic event for Malta, who medaled for the first time on the European stage. And twice.
European Cadets Championships
The cadet category was for children over the age of 12 years. Representing Malta was Michela Scerri (Iron Taekwondo League), Alycia Cassar (Iron Taekwondo League) and Nathan Degiorgio (Dragon Academy). All three were chosen based on their significant successes this year.
Michela fought first, against Greece’s Eleni Aslanoglou on the first day. A very hard draw for the Maltese, who lost her first round. Despite the result, Michela recovered quickly with a well-placed body shot in the second round.
For the majority of the second, Michela maintained a steady 2-0, and later a 3-1 lead up until five seconds to the round’s end. At that moment, Aslanoglou connected with a well-timed body shot to level the score at 3-3, and won for having scored the higher-valued point.
A narrow loss for Malta’s Michela Scerri.
Nathan Degiorgio (Dragon Academy) played next. He beat Slovenia’s Vid Milosevic, who simply couldn’t find an answer to Nathan’s aggressive fighting style. Nathan won with a round score of 2:0, with a point-gap.
He then faced Azeri athlete Ilyas Hatamali, the first-ranked athlete of the division, and the boy who won Gold in the previous European Championships hosted in Malta last November.
Nathan started out strong and even managed a narrow lead over his opponent in his first round before Hatamli’s experience and precision turned the game around in the final segment. Malta’s only male athlete looked to recover in the second, but the Azeri’s intense pressing forced the score in his favor.
Although Nathan represents a different club in Malta, we would like to applaud him for his amazing performance during these games.
Alycia Cassar fought on the final day and drew Germany in the very first match.
Alycia marked an emphatic win with a well-placed headshot in the final seconds of the first round. She then lost in the second round. With all to play for in the third, Alycia pressed her opponent and widened her winning margin to clinch victory.
She then faced Vanja Rankov, the first-ranked athlete of the division and current European champion. Alycia fought very well, connecting with her own fair share of headshots. But in the end, the Serbian got the better of Malta’s athlete with a strong performance that led her to the win. Not only in the match but in the division itself.
Message From The Coach:
Not many would have thought we had what it takes to hammer it out with the giants on the continental stage. But we have shown that - despite our small numbers - we can improve.
I believe the current squad of Maltese athletes and coaches all have the right attitude. They all have the same goals. And from what I’ve seen in Belgrade, we all have the will to succeed together.
In the end, it’s not about the results, because those can go against us sometimes. It is about our attitude and our spirit. This is what makes us fighters, in taekwondo and life.
I would like to congratulate every athlete for their showing during these games, my fellow coach Ditmir Vodinaj, the association, and all clubs and persons in Malta who contributed to our growth.
Thank you.
