Haley Bugeja wins the Atlas Youth Athlete of the Year Award 2021

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After recently achieving the Atlas Youth Athlete of the Month for December, the football star Haley Bugeja has now been awarded with the Atlas Youth Athlete of the Year Award 2021.

She won this prestigious award after a combined vote by a panel of three sports journalists and a public vote which was held online over the past weeks. Runners up are long jumper Jeremy Zammit and swimmer Sasha Gatt, who were both very close behind. The first and previous edition of this award was won by weightlifter Tenishia Thornton and at that time Haley Bugeja was the overall runner up.

Haley Bugeja joined U.S. Sassuolo at the tender age of 16 and drew international attention with a remarkable debut season, in which she finished as her club’s top scorer and one of the top five scorers in Serie A Femminile. Her performances saw her named among UEFA’s top 10 female football players to watch out for in 2021, being the youngest player on the list.

This year has also been a sensational one for Malta women’s international forward Haley Bugeja who opened her 2021/2022 account at U.S. Sassuolo after finding the net in the first half against Napoli in the Serie A Femminile, after returning from a five-month absence due to an injury. In December, Bugeja was awarded the best player in the Serie A Femminile by L Football, an Italy-based publication specialising in woman’s football.

Bugeja’s most recent personal accolade was being included in the IFFHS Women’s U-20’s Best XI, being the first Maltese player to do so. She joined a list of promising talents in the 3-3-4 formation published by the IFFHS, which is the International Federation of Football History and Statistics.

Bugeja was also part of the Malta women’s national team in the recent Women’s World Cup Qualifiers against Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina. She has continued her excellent form which saw her break the record for the youngest ever female player to score an international hat-trick in the European qualifiers.

The presentation of trophy and sports apparel voucher will take place later due to her club commitments abroad.

The aim of this award is to promote and recognize the achievements both in terms of sporting results in Malta and in the international scenario, as well as adherence to the sporting values. The terms for 2022 will remain unchanged where athletes up to the age of 21 who would have distinguished themselves in their respective sports discipline will be shortlisted for the monthly award by a panel of sports journalists. Each winner will again receive the prestigious trophy together with a sports apparel voucher of their choice, courtesy of Atlas Insurance.

Those athletes, officials and coaches who would like to submit a nomination are invited to send in their motivation by email on info@maltasportsjournalists.com.

Photo taken by Domenic Aquilina shows Haley Bugeja celebrating with the Maltese Women’s National Team.

Photo of the Atlas Youth Athlete of the Year 2021’s Trophy

Haley Bugeja tirbaħ l-Atlas Atleta Żagħżugħa tas-Sena 2021

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Wara li rebħet l-unur tal-Atlas Atleta Żagħżugħa tax-Xahar għal Diċembru, l-istilla tal-futbol Haley Bugeja rebħet l-Atlas Atleta Żagħżugħa tas-Sena 2021.

Hija rebħet dan l-unur prestiġġjuż wara votazzjoni minn panel ta’ tliet ġurnalisti mħallta mal-votazzjoni tal-pubbliku, li saret onlajn matul dawn l-aħħar ġimgħat. Fit-tieni post overall ta’ dan l-unur spiċċaw il-long jumper Jeremy Zammit u l-għawwiema Sasha Gatt li kienu ferm viċin ta’ Bugeja. L-ewwel unur annwali li kien dak tas-sena 2020 kien intrebaħ mill-weightlifter Tenishia Thornton u Haley Bugeja kienet ġiet bħala runner up.

Haley Bugeja ingħaqdet ma’ U.S. Sassuolo fl-età żgħira ta’ 16-il sena u ġibdet l-attenzjoni internazzjonali għad-debutt pożittiv li kellha u spiċċat top scorer mal-klabb tagħha u waħda mill-aqwa ħames scorers fis-Serie A Femminile. Il-wirjjiet tagħha poġġewha mal-aktar għaxar plejers b'potenzjal tan-nisa mill-UEFA, fejn kienet l-iżgħar plejer fil-lista.

Din is-sena kienet waħda sensazzjonali għall-attakanta Maltija Haley Bugeja li fetħet l-istaġun 2021/2022 ma’ U.S. Sassuolo wara li sabet ix-xibka fl-ewwel taqsima kontra Napoli fis-Serie A Femminile, wara nuqqas ta’ ħames xhur minħabba injury.

F’Diċembru, Bugeja ġiet ippremjata bħala l-aqwa plejer fis-Serie A Femminile minn L Football, pubblikazzjoni ibbażata fl-Italja li tispeċjalizza fil-futbol tan-nisa.

Hija wkoll għamlitha bħala l-ewwel Maltija mal-IFFHS Women’s U-20’s Best XI. Hija ngħaqdet ma’ plejers oħra ta’ talent fil-formazzjoni ta’ 3-3-4 ippublikata mill-IFFHS, li hija l-Federazzjoni Internazzjonali tal-Istorja u l-Istatistika tal-Futbol.

Bugeja kienet ukoll parti mit-Tim Nazzjonali Malti tan-Nisa fil-logħob ta’ Kwalifikazzjoni għat-Tazza tad-Dinja kontra l-Montenegro u l-Bożnija-Ħerżegovina.

Il-preżentazzjoni tat-trofew u l-vawċer ta’ abbiljament sportiv abbinat ma’ dan il-premju se jingħataw aktar il-quddiem minħabba l-impenji li għandha mal-klabb barra minn xtutna.

L-għan prinċipali wara l-inizjattiva ta’ dan l-unur hi sabiex isir iktar għarfien u promozzjoni tal-kisbiet sportivi tal-atleti żgħażagħ Maltin kemm lokalment kif ukoll fix-xena internazzjonali flimkien mal-importanza tal-valuri sportivi. Ir-regolamenti marbuta mal-unur tas-sena 2022 se jibqgħu l-istess fejn atleti taħt il-21 sena li jkunu ddistingwew ruħhom tul ix-xahar partikolari jkunu kkunsidrati għall-unur tax-xahar minn panel ta’ tliet ġurnalisti. Kull rebbieħ jingħata t-trofew marbut ma’ dan l-unur kif ukoll vawċer ta’ abbiljament sportiv tal-għażla tagħhom ġentilment mogħti minn Atlas Insurance.

Dawk l-atleti, uffiċjali u kowċis li jixtiequ jinnominaw individwi għal dan l-unur huma mħeġġa jagħmlu dan billi jibagħtu l-motivazzjoni permezz ta’ email fuq info@maltasportsjournalists.com.

Ritratt meħud minn Domenic Aquilina li juri lil Haley Bugeja tiċċelebra mat-Tim Nazzjonali Malti tan-Nisa.

Ritratt tat-Trofew tal-Atlas Atleta Żagħżugħa tas-Sena 2021.