#98: ITL Duo Secure 5th Place At E3 Grand Prix Qualifiers
Two high-level ITL juniors- Michela Scerri and Alycia Cassar - both secured 5th place during the Grand Prix Qualifying event held in Vrsac, Serbia.
ITL’s Michela Scerri (blue)
The girls fought on Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd June 2025, with Michela taking part in the females - 44 kg category, and Alycia hitting the females - 63 kg category.
Both girls won their first matches, with Michela beating Greece in the round-of-eight, finishing the first round before time expired. She then registered another two strong performances in the second and third round to secure the win.
Michela would later face UK’s Elissa Decelis in the Quarter Final, where she fought toe-to-toe across two rounds. Unfortunately, despite a very hard-fought showing, the score went against the Maltese.
ITL’s Alycia Cassar (red).
Fighting the next day, Alycia got a good win against in her own round-of-eight, this time against Bosnia. Like Michela, she also capped off the game with a point gap (i.e. a win by “superiority”).
Advancing into the quarter final, Alycia faced a second Bosnian national player; the first seed of the group.
Despite a strong showing, the Bosnian got the better of the Maltese over two rounds, stopping Alycia’s advance into the semi-final.
Both girls left the tournament with a 5th place finish and valuable ranking points accrued.
Alycia and Michela now return to Malta where they will now face several record breaking challenges.
This July, both will compete in the ranked Solidarity Games in Montargis, France. They will then cap off the month with a historic showing at the European Youth Olympic Festival in Skopje, Macedonia.
ITL thanks the Malta Taekwondo Association and SportMalta for making our presence in this competition possible. It also extends its thanks to the Malta Olympic Committee, who will be sending both girls together with coach Ditmir Vodinaj to Skopje.
