3 Total Italian Records Broken on Day 1 of Nico Sapio Trophy

THE 46TH ANNUAL NICO SAPIO TROPHY MEET – GENOA 

• Friday 8th – Sunday 10th November 2019
• Sciorba Sports Complex, Genoa, Liguria, Italy
• 25m (SCM)
• Prelims at 8:45AM Eastern Time/ Finals at 4:30PM (Friday), 4PM (Saturday), 5PM (Sunday)
• Psych Sheet (Friday)
• Psych Sheet (Saturday)
• Live Results

After 14-year old Benedetta Pilato broke an Italian Record in the women’s 50 breaststroke in prelims, 2 more National Records were broken on Friday in the afternoon session at the Nico Sapio Trophy.

First, in the men’s 200 backstroke, a breakthrough came from 21-year old Lorenzo Mora. He clocked a 1:50.45 in the event to win by almost 4 seconds. That time was good enough to add his name to the list of Italians who are qualified for the European Short Course Championships, and also broke the National Record.

The old record of 1:50.75 was set in 2015 by the more-recognizable name Simone Sabbioni. Sabbioni previously held all 3 Italian backstroke records in short course.

Mora’s previous best time of 1:50.92 was done almost a year ago at the Italian Short Course Championships. His own improvement seems to be based mostly on a little more stability in his splitting – he wasn’t as fast on the 2nd 50 as he was in his previous personal best, but also had less of a cliff on the final 50.

Comparative Splits, Mora vs. Sabbioni:

The day’s 3rd record came in the women’s 200 breaststroke, where Francesca Fangio became the 3rd Italian woman to break a National Breaststroke Record in less than a week. She took down the standard in the 200 breaststroke with a winning time of 2:20.56. That broke the 2013 mark set by Giulia de Ascentis at 2:20.93.

Neither Pilato, who broke the 50 breast record on Friday morning; nor Martina Carraro, who broke the 100 breaststroke record last weekend, raced the 200 on Friday.

For the 24-year old Fangio, the swim improves upon her previous lifetime best of 2:21.22 done at the 2018 Italian Championships – the same meet where Mora’s previous best time came.

Other Highlights from Day 1 in Genoa:

• Pilato, after her record-setting swim in prelims, was a little slower in finals in 29.74. Carraro, the 100 breaststroke record-setter, swam 29.77 for 2nd. Given how much faster that was than her swim in the 50 last weekend, Saturday’s 100 meter race sets up for excitement between the pair, and possibly another Italian Record.
• Rising distance star Simona Quadarella won the women’s 400 free in 4:01.17. That’s her new lifetime best by almost 2 seconds, clearing a 4:02.86 that she did at this same meet last year. She is the defending World Champion in the 1500 free and European long course champion in the 400, 800, and 1500 frees.
• Guilherme Guido of Brazil, who has been on a tear in the International Swimming League, picked up another win to his credit on Friday, topping the men’s 50 back in 23.44. In prelims, he swam 23.21, which broke the Meet Record. He was 22.55 at his last ISL meet in October to set a new Brazilian and South American Record.
• 23-year old Matteo Ciampi broke the meet record in the men’s 200 free with a 1:43.72. The runner-up, Stefano Ballo was also under the old Meet Record in 1:44.18, and both swimmers slipped under the European SC Championship time of 1:44.20 in one of the last opportunities to hit times. They’ll join Fillippo Megli, who has already qualified for the event, as Italian 200 freestylers at the European Championships.
• Nicolo’ Martinenghi beat-out his veteran countrymate Fabio Scozzoli in the men’s 100 breaststroke final at the top of a stacked field. Martinenghi won in 57.25 followed by Scozzoli in 57.40 and Germany’s Marco Koch in 58.40. Scozzoli, one of history’s best over 50 meters, was faster to the halfway mark, but Martinenghi passed him on the closing 50.
• In the women’s 200 fly, a new face emerged via a Championship Record from 19-year old Anna Pirovano. She swam 2:06.20 to break Ilaria Bianchi’s prelims record of 2:06.81. Bianchi was a second-and-a-half slower in finals than she was in prelims and finished 3rd. Pirovano’s best time coming into the meet was just a 2:11, as she dropped over 4 seconds in total.
• Another Meet Record went down in the men’s 50 free, this time at the hands of Federico Bocchia. He swam a 21.22 to win and beat the National Record holder Marco Orsi (21.73), and also broke the 12-year-old Meet Record of 21.38 that was set in 2007 by British swimmer Mark Foster. Foster was already 37 by the time he swam that race. Brazilian Cesar Cielo, the World Record holder in the long course 50 free, placed 4th on Friday in 21.87.
• Alberto Razzetti picked up ta Meet Record when he cruised to victory in the men’s 200 IM in 1:54.58. That broke Thomas Ceccon’s old mark of 1:55.75 that was set in 2017. It also earns Razzetti a spot on the team for the European Championships in December. Of note, Hungarian Laszlo Cseh placed 5th in the race in 1:59.84.
• The day’s final Meet Record came in the day’s last race, the men’s 1500 free, when Domenico Acerenza swam a 14:41.18. That broke his own mark of 14:45.72 set in 2017, but was still about 6 seconds short of the qualifying standard for the European Championships in Glasgow.