Young Azzurra News

Porto Cervo, 15 April 2024. Maddalena Spanu, the latest athlete to be accepted into the Young Azzurra programme, triumphed at the WingFoil Racing Asian Championship with a perfect series of first-place finishes in all of the races held. This was the first event of her sporting season and also the first where she competed as a Sporting Member of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. The second leg of the iQFOiL Italian Cup also took place this weekend, with a second Young Azzurra athlete, Federico Pilloni, finishing top of the rankings.

The WingFoil Racing Asian Championship was held in Hong Kong from 10 to 14 April. The weather conditions, however, meant that racing could only take place on the first two days. A total of eight races were completed, including one Marathon race, with the remainder divided into upwind and downwind starts. Maddalena racked up one victory after another, taking first place in all of her races to comfortably claim the top spot on the podium at the Asian Championship.

"The first leg of the World Cup, the Asian Championship in Hong Kong, has just finished. Unfortunately the weather conditions only allowed us to race during the first two days of the event. In the eight races held, I reached the finish line first every time to take victory. I am thrilled with the result, I had never been up against most of the girls so I didn't know what to expect, I had a lot of fun!" commented Maddalena Spanu.

The next event on Maddalena's calendar will be the World Championship in Turkey, scheduled from 22 to 26 May.

Visualizza questo post su Instagram

While Maddalena was in China for her first event of the year, Federico Pilloni, another athlete in the Young Azzurra programme, was taking part in the second leg of the iQFOiL Youth Italian Cup in Cagliari - the first qualifying stage for the World Sailing Championship. The event concluded yesterday, 14 April, with 11 races completed, 8 slaloms and 3 course races. The three days of racing with a fleet of 18 athletes saw Freddy and Leonardo Tomasini in a constant battle for pole position, trading alternating first- and second- place finishes. Yesterday was the decisive day and in the crucial final race Federico won the event, crossing the finish line just one metre ahead of Tomasini.

"The second leg of the iQFOiL Youth Italian Cup is the first of the three qualifying races to determine who will participate in the World Sailing Championship, scheduled for July in Torbole. The next two races will be the third leg of the Italian Cup in Torbole at the end of April, and the International Games in Campione at the beginning of May. The event went well, a close battle between myself and Leonardo Tomasini, which after 11 races saw us finish on equal points in the ranking. The win in the last race was decisive, it earned me the overall victory for the leg. I’m really happy with this win in my home waters, I have two weeks now to make the most of in view of the next two selection competitions. Congratulations to everyone, especially Leonardo, it’s thanks to him that we can keep on raising the bar." explained Federico Pilloni.

The next event on Federico's schedule will be the third leg of the Italian Cup, set to take place in Torbole from 29 April to 1 May.

The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda congratulates its athletes on their achievements.

For further information please visit the Young Azzurra website. For interview requests with YCCS institutional figures or Young Azzurra athletes please contact the YCCS Press Office.