Rowing, watch out for those two: Crosio and Cesarini, a European opportunity

A boat to watch. The Olympic team is in Bled, Slovenia, where the Absolute European Championships will be held from today to Sunday. The multiple U23 world champion Silvia Crosio, also an athlete of the Amici del Fiume in Turin, will be on the boat with the Olympic gold medalist Federica Cesarini. «It will be a stimulating challenge – comments Cesarini who won gold in Tokyo with Valentina Rodini – it’s never easy to find the feeling in such a few weeks, but Silvia is a very promising athlete as well as being a fantastic girl. We’ve been training for the last four weeks and in the only race we did together we had good sensations. I can’t hide the fact that it will be strange to go on a boat without Valentina, but the important thing is that now she recovers as soon as possible to come back stronger than before ».

Valentina Rodini is at rest due to physical problems and in the last blue retreat the Turinese, on the boat with Stefania Buttignon, made herself noticed. Silvia Crosio, very united with the other three girls of the national team, transforms a natural competition into teamwork: «It is a responsibility to compete in the double lightweight Olympic champion, there is tension but the goal is to do the maximum». And while she trains, Silvia continues to study at the Polytechnic, she is four exams away from her degree in Engineering. “The next exams, hoping to frame them with the blue rallies, will be in June”.

«Silvia is a constant emotion – says father Mauro Crosio, director of the Amici del Fiume club – and she is also the tip of the iceberg. Below her are her coaches, Paolo Braida in particular, the family, the club. Silvia is determined, generous, a great scholar. A good example. We never wanted to burn stages with her, studying has always been expected. And she took up her space ».

Behind every athlete who comes to wear the blue leotard there is a club: Mauro Tontodonati, director of Cus Torino Canottaggio, has three athletes at the European Championships. In the women’s eight Veronica Bumbaca, Fiamme Oro and Alice Gnatta from the Agon university program. And then Alessandra Faella. «Alessandra – comments Mauro – is a beautiful little story: our coach in the boys and junior category was on retreat to replace a helmsman. She confirmed it. She will be the first woman in Italy to helm a men’s eight at a European championship ».