#71: ITL Hits Zapresic, Croatia For E2 Tournament

ITL’s Alycia Cassar was the sole athlete taking part in Zapresic’s E2 tournament dubbed the ‘Zapresic Noble E2 Tournament’, held on the 7th June, 2025.

Alycia Cassar (red).

Held near to the beautiful Croatian city of Zagreb, the Croatia welcomed many athletes of its own, along with others from Romania, Serbia, Bosnia, Hungary, Italy and Spain.

Alycia played in the Juniors Female -59kg category and was joined by ITL coach Gianluca Barbara.

She faced Croat Lucija Hajdukovic in the Quarter Final, winning the first round with a well placed headshot in the final third of that round. Unfortunately, the Croat got the better of the Maltese in round two, forcing the game to a decider.

Round 3 remained 0-0 till the final 10 seconds of the match, till one scoring headshot from Aly had to be removed for having been done whilst there was hand-to-chest contact with the opponent. With the score against us and seconds left, it was a difficult situation that resulted in a loss of the match.

While the result was unfortunate, the Association praises Aly’s determination and hard work. Every competition is a step forward - part of a journey spearheaded by our players who work hand-in-hand with each other and the coaches.

You can watch the match by clicking here (match 315).

ITL will now take part in two back-to-back competitions in Germany and Wales in June.

The Malta Taekwondo Association would like to thank Sport Malta and the Malta Olympic Committee for making our Alycia’s in this tournament possible.