The Italian National Team is preparing to take to the water at the World Rowing Coastal Championships & Beach Sprint Finals in Genoa, scheduled from September 6th to 15th at San Nazaro Beach, with the goal of reaffirming the successes achieved in previous editions.

The Azzurri beach sprint team arrives in Genoa hoping to repeat last year’s results in Barletta, aware that the task will be anything but simple. ‘The goal is possibly to replicate last year’s results’, says Spartaco Barbo, head coach of the Open Water Sector of the Italian Rowing Federation. At the 2023 edition held in Barletta, the Azzurri secured first place in the Nations’ medal table with seven medals (three golds, two silvers, and two bronzes), ahead of Great Britain with six and the United States with five.

‘We know it’s very challenging because, since the inclusion of beach sprint in the Olympic program, the technical level and participation have exponentially increased’, adds the coach. ‘We are also coming off a European Championships where our crews performed well, so this gives us hope for a strong World Championships performance for Italy.’

In recent years, Italy has embraced the beach sprint discipline with increasing commitment, organizing itself in a structured manner under the guidance of the federal staff and Technical Director Francesco Cattaneo. Spartaco Barbo emphasized the importance of this path: ‘For about a couple of seasons now, Italy, in an organized way, has approached beach sprint, and under the guidance of the federal staff and Technical Director Francesco Cattaneo, the clubs practicing this discipline have organized themselves to participate in the selections we held to have the best athletes dedicated to beach sprint at our disposal. I am convinced that we will continue to play a leading role, starting right here in Genoa.’

Among the Senior crews, the names of Giovanni Ficarra in the men’s single and the duo of Silvia Tripi and Federico Ceccarino in the mixed double stand out. Federica Cesarini will compete in the women’s single, while the CMix4X+ team will consist of Maria Elena Zerboni, Leonardo Tedoldi, Gustavo Ferrio, Sofia Secoli, and Filippo Wiesenfeld as the coxswain. In the Junior category, Lucio Fugazzotto will race in the men’s single and Maria Lanciano in the women’s single, while Leonardo Bellomo and Pasquale Tamborrino will compete in the men’s double and Alessandra Quaranta and Chiara Tamborrino in the women’s double. In the mixed double, the team is composed of Lucio Cozzolino and Azzurra Severini. The team will be completed by the pararowing crew with Arianna Noseda and Marco Frank.

With the support of a motivated and well-prepared team of athletes, and guided by the experience and vision of the federal staff, Italy is determined to carve out a spotlight at the World Championships in Genoa, reaffirming its role as a leading force in the international Beach Sprint scene.

(PH: Canottaggio.org | Alessandro Carbonara)