Michelle Muscat, the Prime Minister’s wife, has waved away doubts raised over her recent charity swim, refusing to address questions over both the distance and the time reported.
“Michelle Muscat and The Marigold Foundation will not engage in any attempt at stirring controversy by some who seem hell-bent to do so at every occasion,” a Marigold Foundation spokeswoman told Times of Malta.
“We thank the general public for its continued support to this charity fundraising event which makes the activities of organisations, such as Special Olympics and The Alliance for Rare Diseases possible.”
The media, including Times of Malta, were invited to cover the event from start to finish- Marigold Foundation
Ms Muscat swam 14 kilometres along the ‘tail end’ of Malta between Ras il-Qammieħ and Aħrax Point last Saturday, the fifth in a series of annual challenges to raise funds for the Marigold Foundation.
But online commenters quickly began to express doubts about the claims, questioning whether the distance between the start and end points really amounted to 14 kilometres.
They also claimed that Ms Muscat’s stated time - around four hours and 20 minutes - would have put her achievement into world record territory for swims of a similar distance.
The Marigold Foundation declined to answer any questions on Ms Muscat’s route and timings - except to say that she had not used any swimming aids – insisting several journalists had witnessed the entire challenge from an accompanying vessel.
"The media, including Times of Malta, were invited to cover the event from start to finish and were located on a boat following Mrs Muscat at all times," the Foundation noted.
Anna Calleja, Ms Muscat’s coach on the challenge and also the national director for the Special Olympics, also dismissed the claims, telling Times of Malta that the distance had been tracked by a monitor on board an accompanying boat.
Asked about the ostensibly extraordinary time Ms Muscat had registered, the coach pointed to the favourable sea conditions on the day.
“In the first hour and a half, the currents were against her, but when we got past a certain point, the current was helping her along: each stroke was taking her further,” Ms Calleja said.
She added that many had underestimated Ms Muscat’s abilities in the water: “She is very strong; she’s been training five years. She is a very good swimmer and very determined,” she said.
Ms Calleja stressed that the swim had been a charity event, not a race, and turned her guns on those questioning it.
“I can’t understand why professional swimmers who should be pleased with these events, bringing attention to their sport, are criticising this when they should be supporting it,” she said.