Malta marathon
Mediterranean spring
5.3.2017
Going to Malta
It was early Spring in Malta. Not yet green but summer waiting just
behind the corner. Relaxed and easy touristic destination where
people also spoke English. Finnair had not yet started their summer
season direct flights but I could not be selective. The marathon is
when it is.
Malta impressions
Enjoying Malta
I arrived Thursday afternoon. My hotel was old and simple but
located next to St.Julian's bay. I had sea view over the outdoor
swimming pool where swimmers and water polo players trained
every day. Location was convenient. I spent Friday exploring
Sliema and its immediate neighborhood by foot.
Saturday I rented a bicycle and visited also Valletta.
There were plenty of rental stations everywhere: one was
just in front of my hotel and another uphill behind my
neighbor hotel, Le Meridien, which also served for the marathon
registration. Valetta old town was ... older, and more touristic.
Hotel view and the bicycle station
Sliema bay
Coastal pictures
The marathon started from
Mdina,
a fortified city built in medieval times. There was 20 min
bus trip from the Sliema ferry organized by the marathon.
In Mdina, I had extra time for sight-seeing but ended up
waiting in a cathedral listening Sunday morning Mass because
the weather was somewhat chilly.
Mdina and cathedral
Marathon start
The route went around Maltese country side and small towns,
a little bit zig zag before heading to Sliema.
At some point, the routes of full (green labels) and half
marathoners (red label) merged, making the end of the race
a bit more crowded. The last kilometers followed the coastline
to the Sliema ferries.
The windy weather caused some muscles
tightness in the early part, which slowed me down.
Because of the tightness, I expected my time being worse what
it actually was, so the end result (3:19) was satisfactory.
Overall, the marathon was rather demanding, as always. At least
I felt such tired afterwards that decided to skip planned Gozo
sightseeing. Instead, just went to enjoy good Mediterranean dinner
in the seafront restaurant Raffael. That's it. Next morning flew
back to Finland.
Running pictures
Marathon finish
Well deserved dinner
Numerical summary
Time: 3:19:50
Rank: 109 / 828
Pace: 4:44 min/km
Weather: 10 C
Winner: Mohammed Hajjy (2:16:06)
Results
