The Italian Athletics Championships took place from July 29 to 30 in Molfetta, showcasing an array of impressive performances. The event was marked by the breaking of national records and the display of world-class athleticism.
Ayomide Folorunso broke her own Italian record with 54.22 to win her fifth Italian title in the women’s 400 metres hurdles at the National Championships in Molfetta. Rebecca Sartori improved her PB to 55.05 to finish second.
Folorunso set her previous national record with 54.34 in the semifinal of the World Championships in Eugene. This year she clocked her previous seasonal best of 54.44 in Banska Bystrika.
“I expected this record. My rivals are running very fast times and they are a motivation for me. There is still room for improvement. I am happy because my goal was to improve some technical details that did not work well at the start of the season”, said Folorunso.
Leonardo Fabbri won his third Italian outdoor title in the men’s shot put with a best mark of 21.80m. Fabbri backed up this result with two more throws of 21.63m and 21.67m. Fabbri’s training partner Zane Weir set the qualifying standard for the Olympic Games in Paris with 21.69m in the sixth round.
“I am pleased that I managed to produce so many throws beyond the 21 metres barrier. These results show my consistency at high level. I have room for improvement and I aim at achieving the big throw when it matters most. I want to enjoy myself at the World Championships in Budapest. If I enjoy myself, I can perform well”, said Leonardo Fabbri.
Simone Barontini improved his PB to 1:44.50 to win his fourth Italian outdoor title in the men’s 800 metres. Catalin Tecuceanu finished second in 1:45.03 beating 20-year-old Francesco Pernici, who improved his PB to 1:45.23.
“I expected this time. I thought that Pernici would have run very fast at the front to achieve the qualifying standard for the World Championships. I have big expectations for the World Championships. The rivalry with Catalin Tecuceanu is a big motivation for me to continue improving”, said Barontini.
Filippo Tortu won his first 200m Italian title with 20.14 setting the third fastest time in his career in the race dedicated to the memory of Italian sprint legend Pietro Mennea.
“I am very happy that I finally managed to run a time that had been within my reach for a long time. For many reasons I was not able to achieve this goal. It was a very competitive race”, said…
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