Silver In Sardinia: Serial Medallist And National Wrestler Gary Giordimaina Does It Again
Serial winner and Maltese national wrestler Gary Giordimaina came home with yet another medal around his neck. This time, a silver from a Sardinian Open.
Last weekend, Malta took part in the 27th Edition of the UWW International, held in Sassari, Sardinia. A tournament welcoming players from Canada, Great Britain, Israel, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, and of course, Malta.
Four athletes went to war on the day, led by coach Jesmond Giordimaina and International Referee Abraham Vassallo, the latter of whom took charge of several matches on the day.
Taking the field first was -57kg athlete Gary Giordimaina who overcame two opponents in his respective set. He triumphed against Swedish athlete Morteza Madadi, ending the game by Superiority (that is, ending the game before time), and later won against Harvey Ridings, a British national athlete.
He kept going to the final where he, unfortunately, lost against Thomas Epp (Switzerland) to walk away with a well-earned silver medal.
It became the latest piece in his trophy cabinet, with him having reeled in a medal in every international tournament he took part in this year.
“This year has been a very busy year for the Malta Wrestling Federation in order to build up for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, should we make the team,” Gary told Lovin Malta.
“We’ve undergone rigorous training and intense preparations and all I can say is that it’s nice to start reaping the rewards through winning medals at so many tournaments.”
“It’s an honor to represent my country and carry the Maltese flag to the podium. Hopefully, this will earn me a spot on Team Malta for the Games.”
Fighting on the day was also Adam Vella, who started out with a decisive win, by Superiority, against Yahia Tehami (Great Britain). He progressed to the next match but lost to Swiss national Nils Leutert to end in fourth.
The two remaining athletes – Nico Zarb and Nathaniel Buttiġieġ D’ugo took part in a heavier set – the -74kg category – but were eliminated in the first match after two solid performances.
The competition format was that of a ‘knockout style’, which means that one loss could be enough to see an athlete out the door.
Though without question, the event was another success for the team, who always return back to Maltese shores with some serious results in their pocket.
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