Rome is his home. And the European Athletics Championships in the capital could become the springboard for Lorenzo Simonelli's career. The fantastic start to the season last Saturday at the Memorial Giovannini in Ancona, with a time of 6.59 in the 60 meters flat just one hundredth of a second away from the best Italian Under 23 performance achieved by Filippo Tortu in 2019, confirms that the young Italian can dream big, starting from his first outing in his favorite specialty, the 60 hurdles, scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday, January 27, in Lodz, Poland.
The first of a long series of competitions that will take him to the European Championships, scheduled in Rome from June 7 to 12: "2024 - Simonelli says - will be a very busy year, with many competitions. The one we Italians certainly care about the most is Rome 2024 since we will have the Europeans at home. Especially at my home, being Roman. I have great ambitions for this event, I am really pumped and happy. We are already preparing in view of the start of the indoor season but especially thinking about Rome 2024".
Zaynab Dosso: "The Europeans in Rome a dream to live following the exploits of Jacobs and Tamberi"
Simonelli, like all Romans, has a special relationship with the Olympic Stadium. "Since I was a child - continues the Italian athlete - I went to see the Golden Gala and to admire the strongest athletes live. I saw beautiful races and dreamed of being able to express myself one day at the level of those great champions. In particular, I remember the excitement of seeing Usain Bolt run in Rome. During some Golden Galas I also went as a volunteer in service at the Olympic: I had the task of moving the hurdles on the track according to the different disciplines and in the meantime I managed to snatch some autographs from the athletes. Some of those guys, today, are my rivals in the races and I am really honored to be able to participate in the Europeans in Rome, in that same stadium where I went to cheer as a child".
The hurdler will turn 22 a few days from the start of the Europeans and feels ready to constantly improve. "Last year I won silver at the Under 23 Europeans, I know I can still grow and I am working to get higher and higher. This year, together with the staff, we are focusing more on the technique". "I face this discipline as life is faced. A minimal mistake can make the difference and ruin a race. So, one hurdle at a time, one step at a time, and everything can be overcome" Simonelli concludes.
This article is automatically translated