Eleonor Bezzina handed Team Malta its third gold medal of the Games when storming to victory in the 10m air pistol competition at the indoor shooting ranges in Budva,   The success achieved by Malta’s top female target shooter capped a positive day for Malta who added five more medals to end with 19 medals – three gold, eight silver and eight bronze to remain seventh in the overall standings. For Bezzina it was her second triumph in GSSE competition after he had also struck gold in the 2013 edition held in Luxembourg. Bezzina’s triumph yesterday takes major significance when one considers that she was up against top Montenegrin shooters Jelena Pantovic and Nikola Saranovic who were expected to dominate the competition in front of their home fans. Nine shooters were at the start of the competition with the top making it to the final. Here, Bezzina kept her composure to sail into the final just behind Pantovic. However, Bezzina produced when it mattered most, in the final stages of the competition. In fact, it looked as though that Pantovic was set to take gold when she took the lead with only two shots to go. However, Bezzina reserved the best for the last when hitting a score of...

Ben Stokes produced a fine all-round display as England began their quest to win the World Cup with a 104-run thrashing of South Africa in the tournament opener at the Oval on Thursday. The all-rounder top-scored with 89 in England's 311 for eight, held a brilliant catch and took two for 12, including the last wicket, as England won with 61 balls left. Jofra Archer did the early damage with the ball, the fast bowler taking three for 27 in seven overs. «We were very good today -- we were good as a batting unit even though we couldn't score a considerable total which was our Plan A,» said England captain Eoin Morgan. «Ben Stokes has had a full day, his catch was absolutely outstanding. He is a match-winner and lifts everybody.» «Jofra Archer bowled fast and accurate on a slow pitch, it was outstanding from a young guy,» Morgan added. Barbados-born Archer, who only qualified for England in March, made his presence felt even before he had taken a wicket with a bouncer that beat Hashim Amla for pace and crashed into the grille of the helmet, with the veteran opener retiring hurt on five. Archer then reduced the Proteas to 44 for two. Aiden Markram edged to Joe Root at slip and...

Greenhouse gas emissions dropped across the EU over the past three decades but not in Malta. According to a new report published on Thursday by the European Environment Agency, Malta is one of six EU member states to register an increase in greenhouse gases compared to 1990. The agency’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report found that between 1990 and 2017, Malta’s total emissions grew by 2.3% while the EU as a whole saw a drop of 23%. Total emissions across the EU decreased by 1,327 million tonnes since 1990 (or 23.5%), reaching their lowest level during the period in 2014. Another report published earlier this month listed Malta as having posted the second highest increase in emissions from 2017 to 2018. According to that report, the island registered an increase of 6.7%, second only to Latvia, up 8.5%. Greenhouse gas emissions are influenced by factors such as climate conditions, economic growth as well as the size of the population, transport and industrial activities. In Malta, these emissions have been largely attributed to transport and traffic but also to a dependence on heavy fuel oil for energy production, which was phased out in recent years. The latest report notes that...

A fortunate goal from Carolin Simon helped Germany cruise to a comfortable 2-0 win over Chile on Thursday in their final warm-up game before the Women's World Cup. Simon found the net with a mishit cross to crown an excellent performance in front of a large crowd in Regensburg. Coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg had promised attacking football, and Germany delivered just that in the first half. The two-time world champions overran the Chileans and took the lead through captain Alexandra Popp on 29 minutes. Full-back Simon doubled the lead with her peculiar goal on the stroke of half-time, a looping cross dropping in off the post at the far corner. There was also good news for Germany goalkeeper Almuth Schult, who made the starting eleven despite struggling with a shoulder injury in recent weeks. Germany head to France for the World Cup on Monday, and play their opening game against China in Rennes on June 8.

Masai Ujiri, who only discovered basketball as a teen growing up in Nigeria, made the crucial decisions that lifted the Toronto Raptors from NBA disappointment to title contender. The 48-year-old Raptors president made a deal last July for San Antonio star forward Kawhi Leonard, sending away long-time Toronto standout DeMar DeRozan, and fired NBA Coach of the Year Dwane Casey after a second consecutive playoff ouster by Cleveland, hiring Nick Nurse to replace him. «Caught a lot of us off guard,» said Raptors' Cameroonian forward Pascal Siakam. «It was definitely something that was a tough pill to swallow. »He's willing to do anything he thinks is the best thing to put us in position to win. He's going to do everything in his power to make us win.« So far, Ujiri looks like a genius as the Raptors are facing defending champion Golden State in the best-of-seven NBA Finals, which open Thursday in Toronto. »It's surreal but when you put the team together, we all dream of a championship,« Ujiri said. »The change was hard at the time but we knew the kind of player we were getting and if we overcame and we dealt with all the issues that we felt that could come together. "We were all...

Norway's Erling Haland smashed the Under-20 World Cup record for goals scored in a single match when he hit a whopping nine in a 12-0 thrashing of Honduras on Thursday, the biggest win in the competition's history. Goalless in his first two matches as Norway lost to Uruguay and New Zealand, the 18-year-old RB Leipzig starlet opened the scoring in the seventh minute, had another three by half-time before ramming home an incredible five after the break, including two in the final two minutes. His remarkable single-game tally eclipsed the previous record of six made by Adailton in Brazil's 10-3 hammering of South Korea in 2007. However despite the comprehensive win Norway are not yet sure of qualifying for the knockout stages thanks to their previous two defeats, which mean they have to wait for results from other groups to see if they make the cut as one of the best third-placed finishers.

Newly-elected Żebbuġ councillor Steve Zammit Lupi on Thursday admitted to being «overwhelmed» by the support he has received from people in his locality which enabled him to obtain more than a quota in first-count votes. Although he contested as an independent, without any support from the two main political parties, Mr Zammit Lupi, an environmentalist, was elected with 947 votes on the first count.  «The response has been beyond my expectations,» he told Times of Malta.  He believes his election could be a message to the two-party system - that, on a local level at least, people were ready to put candidates and ideas before partisan politics. «That is the way it should always be,» he said. «Żebbuġ is small and I thought that [contesting independently] would be the best way to breach the political spectrum. I was able to focus on policies, rather than compete with others within my own party or in another party,» Mr Zammit Lupi added.  The young councillor, who turns 24 in August, admitted he did not expect to be elected, submitting his name at the eleventh hour and announcing his campaign just four weeks before the election.  Now that he has been elected, he hopes to act as a...

More than €127,500 were discovered by customs officials on Thursday during a routine cash control exercise at Malta Airport’s departures lounge. Customs said in a statement the discovery was made by its Anti Money Laundering team. A Libyan national, who was embarking a flight to Istanbul, was stopped for cash control and submitted to an inspection on his person, luggage and personal belongings. His hand luggage was found to contain a false bottom, where €127,506 in large denominations were concealed. Customs said this was the second largest undeclared cash seizure made by its Anti Money Laundering section, making 2019 a record breaking year in terms of undeclared cash seizures. The police were immediately informed the police and the passenger was arrested pending investigation. In line with European and national law, €10,000 were returned to the passenger and the rest withheld. Just two days ago, a Ukranian national travelling to Istanbul was found carrying €10,559 and agreed to an out of court settlement, forfeiting €559.

US President Donald Trump briefly acknowledged in a tweet Thursday that Russia helped him get elected but quickly backtracked in comments to reporters. Trump until now has said adamantly that he won the 2016 election fair and square, downplaying the impact of what US intelligence agencies say was a concerted Russian effort to meddle in his favor. «Russia, Russia, Russia! That’s all you heard at the beginning of this Witch Hunt Hoax,» Trump tweeted a day after Special Counsel Robert Mueller spoke publicly for the first time since the release of his report on collusion during the election campaign and possible obstruction of justice afterward.  «And now Russia has disappeared because I had nothing to do with Russia helping me to get elected,» Trump added. He again complained of being a victim of what he called presidential harassment. Trump later appeared to recognise the lapse, telling reporters on the White House South Lawn, «No, Russia did not get me elected.» Mueller in his remarks declined to clear Trump of obstruction of justice. He said that under longstanding Justice Department policy he could not bring charges against a sitting president, effectively leaving it up to...

A cleaner’s confession that he had given an electronic access key to a man intending to rob office premises led to the thief’s convinction. Mark Lawrence Rizzo, now 35, was found guilty of stealing electronic office equipment 10 years ago and was placed under probation after the court was informed that the accused had since addressed his personal problems and found a steady job. He had entered a company office at Gżira on three consecutive afternoons back in September 2009, gaining access by means of a plastic electronic key used by the cleaners, complete with its alarm code, which had gone missing some two monhs previously. A report about the missing items had reached the Sliema district police on September 23 with the list comprising a 47” TV, six computers, eight monitors, a laptop and a docking station, worth a total of some €7,500. There had been no signs of any break in and investigators zoomed in on two people working for a cleaning company, who had been on duty at the time that the key had disappeared. One of these confessed to having passed on the key, together with the alarm code, to the accused in exchange for “some money”. The cleaner was prosecuted and sentenced. A...

Britain and Canada raised concerns Thursday that expatriates living and working in Hong Kong could face extradition to mainland China under a controversial proposed extradition law, risking a chill on commerce. Hong Kong's pro-Beijing authorities are pushing a bill through the legislature that would allow extraditions to any jurisdiction with which it doesn't already have a treaty - including mainland China. Historically, the semi-autonomous city has balked at mainland extraditions because of the opacity of China's criminal justice system and its liberal use of the death penalty. «We are concerned about the potential effect of these proposals on the large number of Canadian and UK citizens in Hong Kong, on business confidence and on Hong Kong's international reputation,» Britain and Canada said in a joint statement. «Furthermore, we believe that there is a risk that the proposals could impact negatively on the rights and freedoms set down in the Sino-British Joint Declaration.  »It is vital that extradition arrangements in Hong Kong are in line with 'one country, two systems' and fully respect Hong Kong's high degree of autonomy."

A big summer book sale will be held on Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 5pm in the foyer of the Times of Malta office at Triq l-Intornjatur, Mrieħel. A wide range of titles are available, ranging from thrillers and fiction to cookery books and Melitensia. Prices start from €1. Stock up on your summer reading with the cheapest book prices around.

The second day of competition at the 2019 GSSE provided a rollercoaster of emotions for Team Malta. The Maltese athletes won their first two gold medals in athletics, but that was not short of controversy and drama while the swimmers added four more medals from the Podgorica pool to reach a record tally of medals in a GSSE. Above is a short video showing the highlights of the day from Montenegro.

Seven co-owners of a Senglea apartment, requisitioned in late 1986 and subsequently demolished as part of a slum-clearing project to make way for social housing, were awarded €34,000 in damages and expenses. The owner told the European Court of Human Rights the property, which they had inherited, had been demolished at some point between March and September 1989. They took the case to Strasbourg three years ago after seeking redress in the Maltese courts. They complained they had suffered a de facto expropriation on grounds that the flat had been demolished abusively and that a yearly recognition rent of €158.40 and the award of moral damages to the tune of €1,500 had not made up for the breach they suffered. They also argued they had been deprived of their property and, for 30 years, had not yet received any compensation while they had to disburse costs in litigation. The Strasbourg Court agreed with the Constitutional Court in Malta and noted that the demolition took place before the apartment was taken over by the State under title of possession and use in terms of a declaration by the President in late October 1989, when the government had simply occupied the property...

A choir made up of singers from some of Yorkshire’s best choirs will perform a concert at the basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady, Mosta, today at 7.15pm. It will perform various large-scale works, including Fauré’s Requiem and Vivaldi’s Gloria. The choir will be directed by Jane Hobson and Daniel Timmins, and accompanied by a string quartet and piano. Admission is free and no reservations required. For enquiries, call on 2347 3130 or 9931 8038.

Two workers were injured when they fell in a construction site in Sacred Heart Avenue, St Julian's, on Thursday. The accident happened at 10.55am. Both workers were hospitalised.  No further details were immediately available. 

Here’s a quick reality check to test your sense of the Nationalist Party’s current predicament. First, if Adrian Delia and Simon Busuttil had to kiss and make up tomorrow – livestreaming a fraternal snog that would put Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker to shame (go on, Google it) – do you think it would make the blindest bit of difference? Second, do you think that the statement ‘Daphne had it right’, whether correct or not, has anything to do with (as she herself liked to put it) the price of eggs? Third, do you think the current situation is so simple that no analysis of Saturday’s elections is really needed? Fourth, do you think that if Adrian Delia resigned tomorrow the PN would immediately begin the road to electoral recovery? If the answer you gave to each question is No, congratulations. You are free of the most common hallucinations that have taken hold of Delia’s critics. Don’t get me wrong. Delia cannot win a general election. There is no plausible world in which he can make significant headway with the electorate. It is ludicrous for any Nationalist to take heart from the fact that Saturday’s rout was not as big as some polls had suggested. Delia and his team cannot...

BMIT Technologies plc has held its first annual general meeting following its listing on the Malta Stock Exchange last February. In addition to reporting a successful 2018 to its shareholders, the company outlined major initiatives it is undertaking in order to reach its strategic objectives, including the opening of a new data centre. Addressing shareholders at the Hilton Malta, BMIT Technologies plc chairman Nikhil Patil, touched upon the company’s growth strategy and its journey from a privately-owned organisation to a listed company worth €100 million. “Our strategy saw us investing in Kinetix IT Solutions Limited in 2016, and eventually consolidating it through full acquisition in 2018. This acquisition enables us to continue enhancing our services portfolio, by providing holistic solutions to our customers and positions us to provide a new breed of services to our customers,” he added. Shareholders were also addressed by BMIT Technologies plc CEO Christian Sammut, who provided an overview of the company’s main strategic initiatives, as well as a status update on a new data centre scheduled for completion in 2020.  “We are already in the advanced stages of developing a new...

There cannot be many who are smiling in the Nationalist Party these days, except maybe Simon Busuttil and those in his camp, who did their best to make it hell for their party leader, Adrian Delia. For months they fought him tooth and nail, and it was obvious that Delia had no say with a considerable weighty wing of the party. The bloodletting was made in public too. There were casualties on both sides in what became internecine warfare, and the war was not only disloyal, it was also vicious. It was the Nationalist Party that suffered the worst. Why the war was launched remains a mystery to me. Perhaps Busuttil resigned the party leadership after the thrashing he got in the 2017 general election in the hope he would be asked to stay on. Or perhaps he genuinely felt that Delia could not be good for the party as its leader, carrying baggage as he did, which was heavy ammunition for the Labour Party to use. But Delia had been elected by the party organs and I do not know that Busuttil did anything to chastise them for it. If he did, he did so in private, unlike what he did against his leader. Mind you, I have no insiders in the PN to feed me information. Delia must go, of course.

Six years ago, slain investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was arrested over reports she had used her blog to influence voters on the “day of reflection” in that year’s election. The electoral law lays down that it is unlawful to print and broadcast any material likely to influence voters in the exercise of the franchise a day before polling and on the actual day of the election. Fast forward to May 24 and 25 this year and the political scenario presented a case in which the two main political parties made a mockery of the same law on the social media. The Electoral Commission and the police have been alerted to this but it remains to be seen whether or not any action will be taken against them. Or has the time come to finally put a stop to what to all intents and purposes has become an unmanageable legal condition largely outdated in the age of the internet, apart from the fact that it is difficult to determine what would ‘influence’ a voter because that, of course, depends very much on the individual? Should the condition, therefore, be struck off altogether from the electoral law or should it be modified? While newspapers, radios and television stations dutifully...

Emirates flights with live TV will screen the Uefa Champions League Final on Saturday live on the dedicated in flight sports channel, Sport 24. With an all-English final, the airline has made special arrangements to ensure all the Emirates flights operating to and from England during match times are equipped with Live TV. This includes flights to and from London Heathrow, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Manchester, Newcastle and Birmingham. Emirates currently has 175 aircraft equipped with Live TV including all Boeing 777 and select Airbus 380s. An estimated 70,000 Emirates travellers could be watching the final mid-flight, making Emirates’ “Stadium in the sky” comparable in capacity to the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid where the Champions League Final will be played. Economy class customers watching on board can immerse themselves in the game with the industry’s largest in-seat screens at 13.3 inches. Emirates’ business class screens, at 23 inches and the 32-inch First Class screens remain the industry’s largest for its class. Emirates will also be screening the match live on the 55-inch screen at the iconic onboard lounge on select A380s. Customers travelling in first...

William Chetcuti and Brian Galea are well in contention for a place in Thursday’s trap final after the opening day of qualification at the Budva Shooting Ranges. The participating shooters had to contend with a nervous wait before starting proceedings as visibility in the shooting ranges was scarce due to a thick cloud of fog that covered the venues. After almost two hours of wait, the first round was held and here Chetcuti made his intention clear with a clinical display hitting a straight before adding 22 and 24 to finish with 71 from 75 clays. That left Chetcuti in second place, just one adrift of Montenegro’s shooter Ivo Stanisic who compiled identical scores of 24 to end with 71. The remaining four berths in the top six were filled by Daniel Dandreis, of Luxembourg, Cypriot duo Nikolas Kyriakou and Andreas Makri, and surprise entrant Alessandra Perilli, of San Marino. Perilli, the San Marino top female shooter, was not expected to compete in the men’s event. However, the organisers decision to scrap the female trap event forced the Mediterranean Games gold medallist to make a request to the organisers to be included in the men’s field where also includes her husband Gian...

Maltese swimmers set a new landmark in a GSSE after adding four medals to their current tally in Montenegro to finish the day with nine medals overall, to improve on the previous best of seven won in San Marino two years ago. Alexandra McGonigle picked up her first medal of the Games when she produced a huge burst of speed in the 50 metres breaststroke to finish second in a time of 33.91 seconds. Amy Micallef placed just outside of the podium in this race when clocking 34.25 seconds. On the other hand, Mikhail Umnov picked up his second bronze medal of the Games when placing the 100 metres butterly. Umnov, who on Tuesday also placed third in the 200 metres butterfly, completed the two lap race in 56.07 seconds. Then it was the turn of the relay teams to bring home more podium finishes for the swimming selection. The women’s quartet of Mya Azzopardi, Michee Van Rooyen, Sasha Gatt and Francesca Falzon Young were in fine form in the 4x200 metres race to place third overall with a time of eight minutes 32.44 seconds. Andrew Chetcuti, Harry Stacey, Matthew Galea and Dylan Cachia went one better than their female team-mates as they steered Malta to a silver medal in the same distance...

Team Malta had reason for celebration last night as they finally ended their gold drought in the 2019 GSSE with an historic double triumph in the 5,000 metres to end the day with a tally of 14 medals – two gold, five silver and seven bronze on a wet evening in Bar. Lisa Marie Bezzina and Jordan Gusman were the top performers of our track and field athletes after topping the 5K race in largely contrasting fashion. Bezzina’s victory was nothing short than extraordinary and at the same time controversial after a blunder by the track judges almost cost the veteran runner her first ever gold medal in a GSSE after forcing her to make one extra lap despite she had already completed the distance. In fact, when Bezzina crossed the finish line she raised her arms in celebration but she was soon forced to continue her run after the judges rang the bell for a final lap. Here, Bezzina was overtaken by Cypriot Meropi Panagiotou at the finish. However, Bezzina immediately protested with the officials who immediately admitted their error and handed victory to Bezzina. Still, the official result was not issued until two hours later when the officials checked TV images that Bezzina had completed...

Israel's parliament voted early Thursday to hold new elections only months after April polls in an unprecedented move provoked by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's attempts to remain in power despite failing to form a coalition. Parliament voted 74-45 in favour of dissolving itself and setting elections for September 17. The vote was prompted by Netanyahu's failure to reach a coalition deal even though his Likud party along with its right-wing and religious allies won a majority in April 9 elections. Ex-defence minister Avigdor Lieberman prevented an agreement by refusing to abandon a key demand, with his nationalist Yisrael Beitenu party's five seats just enough to block Netanyahu's efforts. As a result, Netanyahu pushed for new elections to prevent his nightmare scenario of Israeli President Reuven Rivlin selecting another parliament member to try to form a government. He voted in favour of holding new elections.

A group of 75 migrants found stranded on a tuna pen were rescued by the Armed Forces on Wednesday evening. They were taken on an AFM patrol boat and are expected to disembark in Malta early on Thursday. In a statement, the government said the AFM and the Italian coast guard conducted multiple joint rescue operations supporting the Libyan coast guard. The Italian coast guard carried out other rescues and is taking migrants to Lampedusa.

Eden Hazard scored twice and then admitted it was his parting gift as the Belgian's brace helped Chelsea sweep away Arsenal to win 4-1 in the Europa League final in Baku. This match started at 11pm local time on Wednesday in Azerbaijan, but it was Thursday by the time it came to life with a flood of second-half goals started by Olivier Giroud's 49th-minute opener against his old club. Hazard then set up Pedro Rodriguez for Chelsea's second before grabbing a double of his own -- including a penalty -- either side of Alex Iwobi's consolation for Arsenal. The Belgian is widely expected to leave Chelsea for Real Madrid after seven years in England, and this was the perfect way for him to bow out. «I think it is a goodbye, but in football you never know,» the 28 year-old told BT Sport. «My dream was to play in the Premier League and I have done that for one of the biggest clubs so maybe now it is the time for a new challenge.» It is his, and Chelsea's, second Europa League this decade, while it is Maurizio Sarri's first major trophy as a coach. «I am really very happy but the trophy is very important for the club,» Sarri said. "In the Europa League we played 15 matches, won 12 and...

The outcome of Saturday’s MEP elections reflected, almost to precision, the clear indications given by pre-election surveys commissioned and published by The Sunday Times of Malta over the past two months. Both surveys, which tallied with others conducted by other media outlets, indicated a significant gap between the two main political parties, below 50,000 votes. Notwithstanding their margin of error, the surveys indicated that the Labour Party would poll over 50% of the vote with the Nationalist Party winning 40% or less. The last survey, published by The Sunday Times of Malta a week before the country went to the polls, gave Labour 55%, a fraction higher than the actual result. The PN fared worse than the 40% margin projected by the survey, getting 37.9% of the vote, its worst result since 1951. The surveys, conducted by Misco, also proved to be spot-on with regard to the elected candidates in the EP elections. The four Labour candidates indicated as being the most popular in the latest survey by The Sunday Times of Malta were, in fact, all elected. The same applies to PN candidates, with the study clearly predicting the party would lose its third seat and that Roberta...

Former Nationalist MP Michael Bonnici died on Wednesday, aged 75. A pharmacist by profession, Mr Bonnici, who was from Żebbuġ, a locality he was very committed to, was first elected to Parliament in 1987. He served as an MP until 2003, including some years as deputy speaker. He was always moderate and correct in his actions, and was never spiteful in his criticism. In 2011, he returned an honorary decoration he received in protest at the change of a street name that he said was disrespectful to one of the village’s “most respected ancestors”. Mr Bonnici also kept records of the oldest people in Malta. His father, also a pharmacist, lived to be 100, as did his grandmother and great grandmother.    

Team Malta is currently in Montenegro to take part in the 18th edition of the Games of the Small States of Europe. Expectations are high that the Maltese athletes could improve on the haul of 29 medals won in San Marino two years ago. Stay with us to follow all the latest results and achievements of the Maltese athletes in Montenegro. 9.45pm And with that news we bring to an end our blog. Thanks for staying with us and we will leave you with Lisa Marie Bezzina's emotional comments after her victory in the 5,000m race. 9.30pm After two hours of trepidation it has been finally confirmed that Lisa Marie Bezzina is the winner of the 5,000 metres race. Track judges have finally issued their verdict and admitted that Bezzina had crossed the finish line first after completing the stipulated distance and that the race judges had committed a mistake when ordering her to make another lap. Bezzina's triumph gives Team Malta their second gold medal of the Games and the first for the veteran runner in the Biennial Games. 7.30pm Huge news coming out from Athletics as Lisa Marie Bezzina's gold medal is now in doubt after rivals have lodged a protest saying that the race judges have misjudged...

France's Nans Peters crossed the line alone to claim his maiden victory in the Giro d'Italia 17th stage on Wednesday as Ecuador's Richard Carapaz tightened his grip on the leader's pink jersey with four days of racing left. Peters, riding for the Ag2r-La Mondiale team, blew away his rivals at the end of the 181km run through the north of Italy, near the Austrian border. The 25-year-old pulled clear 16km from the line and had built up an advantage of one minute at the foot of the 5.5km final climb. «It's enormous! I'd never won, I'd always come close,» said the rider from the mountainous region of Isere in south-eastern France. Colombian Esteban Chaves, riding for Mitchelton-Scott, finished a distant second 1min 30sec behind with Italy's Davide Formolo of Bora-Hansgrohe third at 1min 51sec. «It's incredible to get my first pro win in a Grand Tour,» continued Peters. «My Giro was already a success having worn the top young rider's white jersey for a few days. I had no stress.» Peters had already been among the leaders in the sixth stage, but had been unable to finish off and dropped to eighth. But it allowed him to pull on the white jersey for three days. Movistar rider Carapaz...

The outcome of Saturday’s MEP elections reflected, almost to precision, the clear indications given by pre-election surveys commissioned and published by The Sunday Times of Malta over the past two months. Both surveys, which tallied with others conducted by other media outlets, indicated a significant gap between the two main political parties, below 50,000 votes. Notwithstanding their margin of error, the surveys indicated that the Labour Party would poll over 50% of the vote with the Nationalist Party winning 40% or less. The last survey, published by The Sunday Times of Malta a week before the country went to the polls, gave Labour 55%, a fraction higher than the actual result. The PN fared worse than the 40% margin projected by the survey, getting 37.9% of the vote, its worst result since 1951. The surveys, conducted by Misco, also proved to be spot-on with regard to the elected candidates in the EP elections. The four Labour candidates indicated as being the most popular in the latest survey by The Sunday Times of Malta were, in fact, all elected. The same applies to PN candidates, with the study clearly predicting the party would lose its third seat and that Roberta...

Miriam Dalli has been appointed Labour’s head of delegation in the European Parliament for the next five years, the Labour Party said. The party said in a statement this was unanimously agreed in a meeting attended by the party’s four MEPs. Dr Dalli, who obtained 63,438 first count preferences, will be serving in the European Parliament for a second term. Commenting on her appointment as head of delegation, Dr Dalli thanked her colleagues and said she looked forward to working with them in the country’s interests. The meeting also discussed the priorities the party’s MEPs shall be focusing upon in the coming months.

Comments made by the PN leader’s ‘kitchen cabinet’ and secretary general Clyde Puli caused an internal backlash, especially among loyal supporters, party sources told Times of Malta. In trying to justify the largest defeat ever suffered by any PN leader, Mr Puli said on NET TV the party had managed to do better than the surveys indicated before the election. “When we worked together, we managed to narrow the gap predicted by the surveys and if this continues we can achieve more results in two years’ time,” he said. Referring to a survey published by the General Workers Union’s weekly, It-Torċa, in November 2017, Mr Puli said the indications were a gap of more than 75,000 votes for Labour. He deemed it positive that the difference in votes won by the two large parties stood at 42,000 votes. Social media websites reporting Mr Puli’s statement were inundated with comments lashing out at him for his “illogical and puerile” justifications and others, particularly, Labour supporters, poked fun at him. “One would understand people like Clyde (Puli) and Pierre (Portelli) trying to save their skin and livelihood after such a disaster. However, it is very insulting to make such stupid...

Team Malta is currently in Montenegro to take part in the 18th edition of the Games of the Small States of Europe. Expectations are high that the Maltese athletes could improve on the haul of 29 medals won in San Marino two years ago. Stay with us to follow all the latest results and achievements of the Maltese athletes in Montenegro. 6.40pm Here are Lisa Marie Bezzina's reactions after winning gold in the women's 5,000m race... 6.32pm GOLD MEDAL!!! Jordan Gusman dominated the men's 5,000m race to emulate his fellow counterpart Lisa Marie Bezzina and earn Malta another gold in this race.  This is the first time that Malta won gold in both distance races.  6.30pm MEDAL!!! Silver medal for the men's relay team as they finished second in a time of 7:46.32 in the 4x200m freestyle race. Team Malta was composed of Andrew Chetcuti, Harry Stacey, Matthew Galea and Dylan Cachia.  6.15pm MEDAL!!! Team Malta has finished third in the 4x200m freestyle relay with the team composed of Mya Azzopardi, Michee van Rooyen, Sasha Gatt and Francesca Falzon Young. They registered a time of 8:32.44. 6.05pm GOLD MEDAL FOR MALTA! Lisa Marie Bezzina has just topped the 5,000m race in...