Two of a kind...

An In Depth Interview with Omar and Jacob El Aida Chaffey

Raymond A Scicluna

Identical twins Jacob and Omar El Aida Chaffey with whom am in difficulty in recognising one or the other, are the two interviewers of the day. The best part of it is that they are both highly competitive, reaching the finish line close to each other and if it were not for the bib number, the issue of identification would surely arise!

Jacob and Omar El Aida Chaffey have now become prominent names in Local Athletics thanks to their consistency and high performances.

Omar, you were awarded Best Intermediate of the Year 2017 whilst Jacob, you were freshly crowned the National Champion in both the 100m and 200m. Jacob and Omar, this is just an introduction of what you both managed to achieve irrespective of the young age of 16. What effect does it leave on you Jacob, that you managed to win the enviable double 100m and 200m in the National Championships in the Open Category? You had to battle it out against much more seasoned athletes and yet you won hands down, stupefying us all and with great times! You were close by 0.02 of a second to set a new NR. Your reaction for all this.

First of all thank you Mr. Scicluna for this opportunity, great initiatives like these encourages us as athletes and also help to promote the sport.

Jacob - The National Championships this year was definitely one to remember. In the heats I clocked 10.97, after that race I was very surprised because I really didn’t think that I would go under eleven seconds in the heats. I found it a bit difficult to keep my calm in between races, because I was very excited for the Final.

When I saw the registered time, I couldn't believe it, I really didn't think that I could get 10.82 at all at that point. After the race I felt a bit strange because I wasn't as happy as I thought I would be.

It seems that I could not believe what I had just achieved until I went home and couldn’t sleep with all the joy and adrenaline I had. It was always one of my goals to become Senior National Champion, but I didn’t think it would be this early.

The 100m Under 20 National Record was really not the aim that day and considering that I have 2 more years to break it with 0.2 seconds to go, I try not to pressure myself a lot. Hopefully the time will come in the near future.

As for the 200m I was not that nervous but, I was hoping to dip under the 22 second mark. After the boost I had had the day before, and considering that I had my brother racing with me this time, I was looking forward to the race. I did not expect to win this event too, but I was focused and won with a time of 22:03. Dipping under the 22 second mark came later during COJI games in Sicily.

All in all, these National Championships were extremely satisfying for me personally because I had always dreamed to achieve what I did and prove that all the training was all worth it.

Omar and Jacob, both of you enjoyed a remarkable season with personal bests and coming close to national records too. You represented Malta at high level several times this year, please share your experiences abroad and your feelings pre and post races. Any prerace jitters or you managed to handle the situation with certain peace and tranquillity? During the past years, both of you competed against the crème de la crème at International levels even indoor when you were in the heat with the World Record Holder 60m Christian Coleman and veteran Kim Collins who at the age of 40 managed a 9.93 in the 100m!! What was your impression contrasting such World Champions?

Indeed, this season was substantial for both of us, where we had some relatively progressive performances. This was also a new experience for us having to race for the first time in an indoor track, which is what we wish to have here in Malta. However, our main focus was on the European U18 Championships where we accompanied each other in Gyor, Hungary.

Omar – We had a lot of competitions this season and focused mainly on the 200m race. Last year, I managed to clock 22.45 in the World U18 Championships in Kenya where I automatically qualified for this year’s European U18 and also repeated the same time locally earlier this year.

I then lowered my PB during COJI with a time of 22.33 and 22.25 in Nationals, which was a great sign that I was heading in the right direction. I got another PB again in the Heats with a 22.02 in Gyor, where I was happy I qualified for the Semis. However, the ultimate goal for this season was to go under 22 seconds which I instantly knew was hard to repeat or even go lower than that, but that is what I strived for in my last race of the season in Gyor.

I carefully followed the recovery procedures instructed by my coach so as to make sure I get the time I wanted. The day after, prior the Semi-Finals, I was extremely agitated and excited but I managed to stay focused and finish the race. As I approached the stands I could hear my parents say I clocked under 22 with a super PB of 21.86 with legal wind. I was extremely content I got the desired time and will continue to push myself to even go lower.

Jacob – This year was an exceptional one, we visited a lot of places like Belgium, Italy and England where we prepared ourselves for much higher events.

I had the chance to go to the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham. I was in the stands watching the races while constantly checking if the start list was out, and when it was finally out I just couldn’t believe that my name was sandwiched between Kim Collins and 60m World Record Holder Christian Coleman. From watching them on TV at home early before school each day ,to racing against them especially at the age of 16 is something that I thought was nearly impossible … it was a dream come true! I was not as excited as I thought I would be before the race, until I went into the call room, sat down and started listening to the voices of these icons. When I went into the stadium the scene was extraordinary - watching all those people made me feel amazed. After a false start by another athlete in my Heat,I clocked 7.09. I had wished to clock another sub 7 second performance but the special experience was enough.

I will definitely treasure this experience throughout my life as it really affected me not just as an athlete but also as a person.

Later this year, after the National Championships I had the chance to compete with my brother at the Under 18 Euro- pean Championships in Hungary which was one of the main targets planned for this year. After the 22.00 seconds I clocked in the 200m heats I didn’t think that I could go lower the next day in the Semi Finals, but I managed to clock a 21.60 illegal wind which really surprised us because it is difficult to repeat the same time after less than almost 16 hours let alone lower it with 0.4 seconds.

This was also a confirmation that all the training and the training-competitions that we had paid off in the end. We were over the moon with the results and I feel that it helped both of us a lot that we accompanied each other during this competition. I feel that the motivation and the pre-race talks with my brother helps both of us to perform at our best.

24 hours after my arrival in Malta from Hungary I was on my way to the World Under 20 Championships held in Tampere, Sweden. This was another exceptional experience for me to be able to see other younger idols of mine and also compete against them.

I am grateful for this season so far and am currently preparing myself for the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina this October. I feel that competitions like these teach me a lot and help me motivate my- self in my athletic career.

You are very young and you are advancing to second year 6th form. So far both of you managed to cope with studies and athletics. One of the most incredible things that I observed a year or so ago was that you competed on the Day of the O level exams, sat for the exams and soon after returned to Marsa for a training session! How is this possible? You should not simply love athletics but there’s more if someone is expected to go through all this!!

It’s a matter of time management and sacrifice, but above all, our parent’s patience and time where they encourage us and do whatever they can to help us succeed in our athletic career. An example is that they drive us to and fro places when they can and prepare healthy food and snacks for us. Despite the slight time we have during weekdays, especially during the exam season, which was in parallel with the preparation for the European Under 18 Championships, we managed to do certain training which consisted of short training sessions but effective enough to keep us improving and clocking good times instructed by our Coach Mark Farrugia. These sessions consist of certain training which can be done at home. We feel that because we accompany each other most of the time we find the difficult scenarios to be a bit easier. It can be stressful