By Taylor Covington, Swimming World College Intern.
The 2019 Italian National Swimming Championships entered its third day of competition, offering a wide array of events ranging from the 100 to 1500 free to flex its muscle in both sprint and distance events. Spectators were not disappointed, as a four-way tie for first in the men’s 100 free made for an exciting spectacle, showcasing talent across the lanes.
Marquee players in this morning’s performance included Gabriele Detti, who turned in another impressive freestyle swim to make his presence known in the middle lane. Posting a 7:45.35 in the 800 free, Detti proved victorious in a tight stroke race with Gregorio Paltrinieri, as the two made the distance event look more like a one-lap sprint in the final 50 meters.
Simona Quadarella continued to dominate on the women’s side, taking the 1500 with ease to pile on to an already decorated individual championship meet.
Men’s 800 Free
Gabriele Detti and Gregorio Paltrinieri (7:45.35) engaged in a distance duel, as the two exchanged leads throughout the race until Detti surged into the finish, posting a time of 7:43.83 to take the win by a little over a second. The two pulled away from the field early on, while Domenico Acerenza headed the second wave, dropping a 7:47.20 to seize third. Marco De Tullio swam an impressive back-half, nailing down fourth with a time of 7:53.20, while Matteo Lamberti brought it home in 8:02.69 to break into the top five. Davide Galimberti, Alessio Occhipinti, and Johannes Michael Calloni rounded out the final eight with times of 8:04.64, 8:05.30, and 8:06.31, respectively.
Women’s 200 IM
Ilaria Cusinato continued to showcase her versatility, as she split a clean 200 IM to cinch the win with a time of 2:14.39. Sara Francheschi (2:15.47) stayed close on her heels, taking second by a wide margin. Anna Pirovano had more to contend with, as she took third by a little over a tenth, edging out Costanza Cocconcelli and Roberta Circi who posted times of 2:16.23 and 2:16.60, respectively.
Luisa Trombetti (2:16.63) stayed with the pack, but was forced to concede fifth by just 0.03, bumping Francesca Fangio (2:17.65) to seventh and Carlotta Toni to eighth (2:17.95).
Men’s 200 IM
Lorenzo Glessi (2:02.01) and Pier Andrea Matteazzi (2:02.62) duked it out on the men’s side, with Glessi ultimately taking the top spot. Alberto Razzetti refused to let them get too far away, crashing the pads with a time of 2:02.64 to edge out Simone Geni (2:02.71). Massimiliano Matteazzi (2:02.90) was relentless in staying with the pack, as he edged out Matteo Pelizzari (2:02.94) and Thomas Ceccon to take sixth in a tightly packed field.
Women’s 100 Free
The women jumpstarted the sprint schedule with a bang, as Federica Pilgrims was the only woman under :55, touching in at 54.34 to take down Silvia Di Pietro (55.34) who sped in exactly a second later. Erika Ferraioli edged her way into the top three, finishing long with a time of 55.39 ahead of Paola Biagioli (55.77) and Laura Letrari (55.77) who threw down identical swims. Giada Galizi (55.81) out-touched Giorgia Biondani (55.92) at the finish, as the two went stroke for stroke. Maria Gineve Masciopinto (56.56) rounded out the top eight with a 56.56.
Men’s 100 Free
The men’s 100 was the highlight of the morning, as four men tied for first. Santo Yukio Condorelli continued to flex his strength in sprint freestyle, but he was not alone. Driving to a 49.02 finish, Luca Dotto, Alessandro Miressi, and Ivano Ivended dropped identical times to earn the coveted first place spot. Missing the four-way tie by less than a tenth was Manuel Frigo (49.11), who managed to out-swim Lorenzo Zazzeri (49.24) and Alessandro Bori (49.36) with a low :49. Andrea Vergani rounded out the elite eight at the bottom of the :49’s, posting a 49.39 to earn his spot in the final.
Women’s 1500 Free
Simona Quadarella established her dominance in the distance events, turning in a time of 16:04.02 to beat her closest competitor in Giulia Gabbrielleschi (16:19.34) by over 15 seconds. Alisia Tettamanzi stayed in the race, posting a time of 16:23.61 to round out the top seeds.
Giulia Salin lead the second charge with a time of 16:34.87, followed by Martina Rita Caramignoli (16:36.48) who narrowly out-swam Arianna Bridi (16:37.84). Silvia Ciccarella (16:43.41) and Rachele Bruni (16:44.21) sped down the lanes to round out the morning schedule, dropping impressive times of their own.
Congratulations