Malta enjoys ancient sport . Crowds in boats watching the ancient Maltese sport of ' Il Giostra ' , reputed to have been introduced to the island by the knights of Malta . The pole is thickly coated with tallow and inclined at an angle of about eighty degress , along which competitors have to walk to sieze a flag . The prizes are thirty shillings for the end flag and twenty shillings for the inner flag . A competitor falling into the water , watched by the crowd during the annual contests at Malta . 3 October 1932