Disappointment. That’s the sentiment of Mark Cutajar, the chief executive of SportMalta, as the 2021 Tokyo Olympics end.

“Obviously you cannot be satisfied with Malta’s results,” said Cutajar, who heads the official body that promotes success in sport for the country.

While the efforts and hard work put in by Malta’s individual athletes cannot be downplayed, it was yet another medal-less outing for Malta.  

Competing as early as 1928, Malta is one of 71 countries still seeking to win an Olympic medal. Having taken part in 16 summer Olympics, the island is ranked third, after Myanmar (17) and Monaco (20), for participation, but has yet to take home a bronze, silver or gold.

The closest Malta has ever come was with clay shooter William Chetcuti, who placed eighth in the 2008 Summer Olympics – Malta’s best result yet. 

Not just small size

So what will it take for Malta to move forward in its pursuit of Olympic glory?

Many argue that the island’s size is its downfall. Yet San Marino, with a population of roughly 30,000, has become the smallest country to win an Olympic medal, showing that size should not be a factor.

Rachid Chouhal, a national champion, Olympian athlete and head coach at Rush Athletics club, said he sees the potential and talent on the island. The problem is what happens then.

“One of the key things we must do is focus on our national sport system and culture to improve our performance,” Chouhal said.

He recalled that to prepare for the Games of the Small States of Europe in 2000, he had spent three years training professionally every day, and was supported by funding.

The fact that we are a small country should be a benefit

“The fact that we are a small country should be a benefit: if we only have 10 top athletes, then we can afford to invest in them, unlike other countries which might struggle to invest in hundreds of athletes.”

Proper coaching

Chouhal also pointed to the need for a proper coaching system – there needs to be a local standard for coaches. There had been cases, he said, where the performance of very good local athletes was hindered by their coach.

His call for a proper coaching system was echoed by Andy Colbourn, who was the national swimming coach for nine years.

“What Malta really needs is a proper coaching association, which can set a standard of coaching, including mentoring coaches,” Colbourn said.

Both emphasised the need for a higher standard of PE teachers.

“Children are hungry to learn about sports but sometimes schools are lacking the right teachers to guide them and identify talent in young children,” Chouhal said.

Better sports facilities

Both also stressed the importance of improving sport facilities.

“It would be amazing to see Ta’ Qali transformed into a sports village, a place where athletes and coaches can find decent facilities, both indoors and outdoors,” Colbourn said.

“Not only would this benefit professional athletes but also build national pride in sports and influence younger generations.”

A concern of many young athletes, Chouhal said, was that while training to become a world-class athlete took dedication and preparation, they would not have a career in their chosen sport.

“The issue we have is that we want to go to the Olympics and win medals without sacrifice. It doesn’t work that way. We need to invest in athletes and their future.”

“There is no bonus to being a top athlete in Malta, unfortunately,” Colbourn said.

“While the situation is improving slowly, we still have this mentality that sports is a secondary thing, and this starts from school. We need to provide more support and incentives for our athletes.”

SportMalta’s Cutajar said the first major miss was the fact that most of the athletes in the Malta contingent did not qualify directly to the Games.

Some athletes’ results also showed they had peaked in other competitions before the Olympics.

It was now important for the country to look past the Tokyo Games and to try and push Maltese athletes to reach higher performances in the future, he said.

He said he was looking forward to the future, following the €7.7 million invested by the government through SportMalta in the technical preparation of athletes, and the €50 million spent on infrastructure

“We need to keep searching for athletes who can change their status to professional levels, as it is important to have our athletes training at least five to six hours every day. Our determination is to lift Maltese sport and we are determined to reach our goals.”

How did Malta’s athletes do?

Target shooter Eleanor Bezzina placed 26th out of 53 contestants in the 10-metre Air Pistol competition and finished 41st from 44 shooters in the 25-metre pistol competition.

Swimmer Andrew Chetcuti placed second in the 100m freestyle heats.

Sixteen-year-old swimmer Sasha Gatt placed sixth in her 400m freestyle heats and third in the 1,500m heats.

Track and field sprinter Carla Scicluna came in third place in the 100m preliminary round heat, progressing to the first-round heats and finishing eighth.

Yasmin Zammit Stevens, Malta’s first female Olympic weightlifter, finished third in her group in the 64kg category, setting a new national record.

Malta’s first badminton player in the Olympics, Matthew Abela, lost in the first round of the men’s singles.