Karl Miggiani set a new Round Malta windsurfing record of 3 hours, 46 minutes and 5 seconds, taking well over an hour and a half off the 5 hours 21 minutes set by Carmelo Abela in 1995, at a race hosted by the Malta Young Sailors’ Club as the final qualifier for the Foiling 100.
Five sailors set off clockwise from St Paul’s Bay at 09:40: Jean Paul Fleri Soler, Karl and Shaun Miggiani, Seb Ripard and Tom Zammit Tabona. Waves ranged from flat to 2.5 metres and the wind from 30 knots down to five, so the fleet kept switching between flying and stalling. Miggiani led for most of the course, with Fleri Soler, winner of the first Malta–Sicily windsurf race in 1984, hot on his heels. Zammit Tabona retired near Bengħajsa, and Shaun Miggiani and Ripard near Armier when the wind died completely.
“The 75km stretch proved to be a challenging course, testing not only our physical fitness but also our mental resilience due to the unpredictable shifts in conditions we faced. Naturally, the satisfaction of not only completing the course but also setting a new record is immeasurable,” said Karl Miggiani. For perspective, the Round Malta sailing record, set by Lee Satariano’s Artie III in 2019, stands at 4 hours 44 minutes.
The club now prepares for the Foiling 100, a 100km race from St Paul’s Bay to Ragusa from 16th to 19th May, and thanked Yachting Malta, Casamigos (courtesy of M. Demajo Wines & Spirits Ltd) and Visit Malta.
Photo Credit: Peter McLean
