National Double and Triple Ironman record holder Fabio Spiteri together with John Vella and Juliya Azzopardi Mazur will be running both the half and full marathon at one go on Sunday morning at the 2020 GiG Malta Marathon. They will be running a total of 64km on the day to raise funds for local disability foundation Inspire.

Leader of the pack, Spiteri told Times of Malta that even though his training sessions are usually this kind of distance, the charitable aspect is something he always tries to amalgamate into his running sessions.

“This time I decided to do this for Inspire because I’ve been there and I know how much funds they require so for this 64km, we will try to raise as much as we can,” Spiteri said.

“My health is something I never take for granted because I fall in a category of people who are lucky to be independent, with the ability to train and run for long hours. So, because of this, I try to do things to help those are less fortunate. There are people who have been in a wheelchair for their entire life so at least I can raise money to help them out.”

Speaking on behalf of Inspire, Therese Bonnici explained that even though the Maltese government “recognises the importance of the services that we offer and subsidises many of them, the foundation is still heavily dependent on donations, voluntary help, volunteering and social enterprise to continue to provide support to those in need to be able to make a difference in the lives.”

As a result, she said the foundation was very happy to see athletes like them making such an effort to help out.

“Initiatives such as this one, where three athletes use their talents, time and efforts to help Inspire, is what keeps us going,” Bonnici said.

“It helps us raise more awareness about the cause of disability, and raise more funds to be able to offer services to more and more people. Without initiatives like this, we would be truly limited in how and who we can help.

“We are therefore very grateful to Fabio, John and Juliya for taking on this huge feat in aid of Inspire, and we thank them wholeheartedly on behalf of our clients, their families, our employees and volunteers.”

This feat will also serve as part of their preparation for the Double Ironman race in July. While Spiteri holds the national record in the double Ironman, finishing the challenging race in 26 hours back in 2017, he will be joined by Vella and Azzopardi Mazur, whom he has taken under his wing for this summer’s event.

For the pair, this would be another great feat as Vella would be only the sixth Maltese man to finish the Double Ironman, while Azzopardi Mazur will be in fact the first Maltese woman to complete it.

“I advised them to try to do this kind of distance firstly because I believe in them and secondly because as athletes, they’re mentally strong. It doesn’t matter how physically strong you are, if your brain stops, your body will stop,” the 45-year old said.

“I think I influence them in a good way because we are doing a lot of the training together and I’ve already done the distance a number of times so I guess they have a good guide.”

On his part, Spiteri will be looking to break his own record this summer as well as attempt the five-ironman race as well.

“I hold the national record for the Double Ironman and I’m going to obviously try and break it so my preparations are fully focussed on that,” he said.

“After that, I’ve got a Five-Ironman in five days race. It’s a race I tried to finish last year but I had to stop midway because of health problems I had suffered from. So, this time around, I want to finish and be the first Maltese to have done a race of this calibre.”

Asked about the potential of Maltese athletes, Spiteri said he believes the rise of the sport is happening everywhere, including Malta and that the number of runners who train for these distances will surely grow.

“Nowadays, there are many people attempting Ironman and the Double Ironman – which I may have reopened the path for people to train for. As yet we’re going to be a team of three but we’ll see further on.”

While the trio will be focusing on their running today, current Coronavirus fears have naturally crept into the racers’ minds. Asked about the issue, Spiteri admitted he has thought about it but it is not something which will keep him from running the race.

“I’d be lying if I said I had not thought about it but at this stage, life goes on,” Spiteri said.

“We can’t really take any precautions because we’re not fully informed about the current situation.

“It’s a big question mark to say the truth and even though the marathon organisers have urged those coming from affected countries to carry out the 14-day quarantine, I’m not sure how this can be reinforced.

“Whereas before, at the finish line where the mass of people gather, I would stay to chat with other runners, this time I’d probably have to get changed to head back home when I finish running.”