2008 winners Chetcuti, Abela make final list

Double trap shooter William Chetcuti and bowling ace Sue Abela are in line to retain their honours in the SportMalta Awards - Għażliet Sportivi Nazzjonali after they were named among the finalists for the 2009 contest.

The winners will be announced during a presentations night at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta, on January 16.

Charles Camenzuli, president of the Għaqda Ġurnalisti ta' l-iSport, told a news conference yesterday that this year's 49th edition of the sports awards will, in the main, retain the format of the previous years.

He said that in the coming days association members will receive the voting documents to choose their preferred candidates in each of the five categories.

"2009 has been another great year for Maltese sport and I think this contest is the one that comes closest to rewarding the best sports personalities that excelled most during the past 12 months," Camenzuli said.

"This year our association is benefiting from the assistance of the Kunsill Malti għall-Isport who have taken an active role to raise the profile of these awards.

"We have the same objectives and we hope that this partnership will continue to blossom in future years."

Chetcuti, the 2008 Sportsman of the Year, is again among the five finalists but this time he has to contend with the challenge of Aaron Ciantar, the two-times P1 world champion, and Charles Degiorgio (horse racing), Alex Borg (snooker) and Nikolai Portelli (athletics).

Abela, last year's top female athlete, also faces stiff competition in her category as she will be up against basketball player Rebecca Brincat Thorensen, who led the national team to a gold medal in the GSSE, Therese Brousson Camilleri (squash), Kim Cassar (tennis) and triathlon champion Danica Spiteri.

In the Team of the Year, Ciantar, winner of this award last year with Conam Yachts, is again among the finalists as his Chaudron Seagull outfit have been shortlisted along with the national teams of squash (women), basketball (women), waterpolo and skeet shooting.

There will be a new Official of the Year for 2009 as the previous winner, Saviour Portelli, president of the Malta Shooting Sport Federation, is not among the finalists this time round.

The winner will emerge from Frank Camilleri (basketball), Terry Camilleri (snooker), MFA president Joe Mifsud, Tonio Cini (motor sport) and Malta Judo Federation president Envic Galea.

In the U-17 category, the five finalists are Kirsty Caruana (gymnastics), Sam Deguara (basketball), Clive Farrugia (shooting), Colette Sultana (squash) and Thomas Zammit Tabona (sailing).

Special feats

During the presentations night, the organisers will also recognise the feat of Special Olympics duo Michael Calleja and Alexia Wetz for their excellent performances on the international scene.

Bernard Vassallo, the KMS chairman, yesterday explained how the winners of the SportsMalta Awards will be determined.

"All 10 finalists in the journalists' Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year categories are in line to receive our awards this year," Vassallo said.

"Our winners will be declared after a voting process which is made up of 40 per cent of the votes cast by the sports journalists, another 40 per cent from votes of association delegates present during the presentations' night and the other 20 per cent from a public vote that gets underway via SMS in the coming days."

The gala night, to be broadcast live on TVM, will be presented by Norma Saliba and Keith Demicoli.

The Finalists

Sportsman of the Year: A. Borg (snooker), W. Chetcuti (shooting), A. Ciantar (powerboats), C. Degiorgio (horse racing), N. Portelli (athletics).

Sportswoman of the Year: S. Abela (bowling), R. Brincat Thorensen (basketball), T. Brousson Camilleri (squash), K. Cassar (tennis), D. Spiteri (triathlon).

U-17 award: K. Caruana (gymnastics), S. Deguara (basketball), C. Farrugia (shooting), C. Sultana (squash), T. Zammit Tabona (sailing).

Team of the Year: women's basketball team, Chaudron Seagull (powerboats), women's squash national team, waterpolo national team, skeet shooting team.

Official of the Year: F. Camilleri (basketball), T. Camilleri (snooker), T. Cini (motorsport), E. Galea (judo), J. Mifsud (football).