As an energetic youngster growing up on Lago di Garda, in northern Italy, I practiced all sort of sports competitively: swimming, skiing, water skiing, windsurfing, tennis. You name it.
In an effort to give me discipline and structure, my parents enrolled me in the town swim program (Avangarda Desenzano - which had produced Italian Olympians). Swim practices, swim times, swim meets is all just a daze still at this point...
At the same time I was alpine ski racing - as family tradition wants - with decent results. At 17 I became the FISI Carving Cup Italian Jr National Champion, and was ranked top-20 in the FIS Carving Cup European Tour.
Soon after that I willingly moved to the USA for a year of foreign exchange at Cushing Academy, in Massachusetts. There, at the age of 18 I became the New England’s Alpine Ski Regional Champion in Giant Slalom.
On an impromptu decision, I decided not to return home to Italy to enroll at university, but to remain in the USA and enroll at Roger Williams University, in the greatest smallest State of Rhode Island. There I joined the swim team (NCAA D3). Just like in my earlier swim days, it was all just a daze. I made it to New England Qualifiers, but wasn't really into it. Something else had gotten to my mind....
The Ocean. Living just a mere 15 minutes from the stormy Atlantic Ocean fueled my windsurfing fire. I had practiced the sport regularly on Lake Garda during the summers, but had never lived on the Ocean before. I picked up every water-sport I could in order to extend my water play time. I would windsurf or kitesurf if windy, SUP and surf if not.
I gave it a stint as a professional "waterman", lived in Bonaire in the Netherlands Antilles, Furteventura in the Canary Islands, and then Oahu in Hawaii. My results in competition never excelled though, as I didn't seem to perform well in judged sports. I was a Wildcard Entry at the 2008 PWA Freestyle Windsurfing World Cup Grand Slam in Fuerteventura; won the 2009 Matunuck Windsurf Wave Classic; and was a trialist at the 2011 Sunset Beach Hawaii Standup World-Tour.
While living on Oahu - HI, I discovered triathlon in the summer of 2011. By the end of the 2012 season I had established myself among the top triathletes on the island. Wanting to push my racing and compete against the bests, I moved to Boulder in September 2012, to train with the 12x Collegiate National Champs: the CU Boulder Triathlon Team, under the coaching of Mike Ricci.
In 2013, my first season of racing triathlons in the US mainland (and not on an island in the middle of the Pacific...), I finally was able to compete at bigger races and against tougher fields: my amateur results that year included a win at Boulder Peak 5150, 4th at USAT National Championships (olympic distance), and 3rd at HyVee 5150 US Championships.
In 2014 I embraced the tough reality of professional triathlon and cut-throat fields. A few running injuries set me back right as the season started to heat up, but had some signs of good things to come at Boulder 70.3 "Pro Town Throw Down" (2nd out of the water and in the mix on the bike, in a World Championship caliber field) and Boulder 5150 (2nd out of the water, 3rd off the bike, again in a stellar field).
As my injuries slowly healed, in September '14 I I had my best month of hecting racing yet. In the time span of only 4 weeks I achieved the following results (in chronological order): made the B final at the US Super Sprint Championship in Vegas (draft-legal), got 4th at Tri-Cal Pacific Grove (draft-legal), won the SuperFrog Half-Ironman (the first and oldest half-ironman in the US, won by Lance Armstrong in 2012), and got 3rd at the inaugural Challenge Half Rancho Cordova.
BIG THINGS to come...
In an effort to give me discipline and structure, my parents enrolled me in the town swim program (Avangarda Desenzano - which had produced Italian Olympians). Swim practices, swim times, swim meets is all just a daze still at this point...
At the same time I was alpine ski racing - as family tradition wants - with decent results. At 17 I became the FISI Carving Cup Italian Jr National Champion, and was ranked top-20 in the FIS Carving Cup European Tour.
Soon after that I willingly moved to the USA for a year of foreign exchange at Cushing Academy, in Massachusetts. There, at the age of 18 I became the New England’s Alpine Ski Regional Champion in Giant Slalom.
On an impromptu decision, I decided not to return home to Italy to enroll at university, but to remain in the USA and enroll at Roger Williams University, in the greatest smallest State of Rhode Island. There I joined the swim team (NCAA D3). Just like in my earlier swim days, it was all just a daze. I made it to New England Qualifiers, but wasn't really into it. Something else had gotten to my mind....
The Ocean. Living just a mere 15 minutes from the stormy Atlantic Ocean fueled my windsurfing fire. I had practiced the sport regularly on Lake Garda during the summers, but had never lived on the Ocean before. I picked up every water-sport I could in order to extend my water play time. I would windsurf or kitesurf if windy, SUP and surf if not.
I gave it a stint as a professional "waterman", lived in Bonaire in the Netherlands Antilles, Furteventura in the Canary Islands, and then Oahu in Hawaii. My results in competition never excelled though, as I didn't seem to perform well in judged sports. I was a Wildcard Entry at the 2008 PWA Freestyle Windsurfing World Cup Grand Slam in Fuerteventura; won the 2009 Matunuck Windsurf Wave Classic; and was a trialist at the 2011 Sunset Beach Hawaii Standup World-Tour.
While living on Oahu - HI, I discovered triathlon in the summer of 2011. By the end of the 2012 season I had established myself among the top triathletes on the island. Wanting to push my racing and compete against the bests, I moved to Boulder in September 2012, to train with the 12x Collegiate National Champs: the CU Boulder Triathlon Team, under the coaching of Mike Ricci.
In 2013, my first season of racing triathlons in the US mainland (and not on an island in the middle of the Pacific...), I finally was able to compete at bigger races and against tougher fields: my amateur results that year included a win at Boulder Peak 5150, 4th at USAT National Championships (olympic distance), and 3rd at HyVee 5150 US Championships.
In 2014 I embraced the tough reality of professional triathlon and cut-throat fields. A few running injuries set me back right as the season started to heat up, but had some signs of good things to come at Boulder 70.3 "Pro Town Throw Down" (2nd out of the water and in the mix on the bike, in a World Championship caliber field) and Boulder 5150 (2nd out of the water, 3rd off the bike, again in a stellar field).
As my injuries slowly healed, in September '14 I I had my best month of hecting racing yet. In the time span of only 4 weeks I achieved the following results (in chronological order): made the B final at the US Super Sprint Championship in Vegas (draft-legal), got 4th at Tri-Cal Pacific Grove (draft-legal), won the SuperFrog Half-Ironman (the first and oldest half-ironman in the US, won by Lance Armstrong in 2012), and got 3rd at the inaugural Challenge Half Rancho Cordova.
BIG THINGS to come...
