Less than forty-eight hours to the 52nd Edition of Trofeo Settecolli Clear/International Swimming Competition. Last trainings before the great show. Many of foreign protagonists are training at the Federal Centre in Ostia. Among them the Sweden champion Therese Alshammar, the Lithuanian Meilutyte and the Japanese Takeshi Matsuda.
Available and enthusiastic, they are looking forward to dive in the Stadio del Nuoto. We met them this morning. They just finished their trainings and they had still water pearls on their swimsuits. Here below videos and releases.
Takeshi Matsuda: “I remember well the bronze won in Rome in 2009 against great champions, with a beautiful audience in a beautiful swimming pool. I like a lot the Italian fans. They are enthusiastic and give their friendliness. I like Ostia, its swimming pool, its food and the new facilities of the centre. I am in Rome to give my best because I won’t participate in the World Championships in Kazan, but I will try to qualify for the Olympic Games in Rio next year. This is my first aim”.
Therese Alshammar: “I am happy to come back to Rome after several years of absence. The Stadio del Nuoto is very beautiful. My first World Championships was in Rome in 1994, so this place is very special for me. I have a lot of memories first of all about the races. The federal centre is really incredible with its swimming pool, gym and guesthouse. Everything is professional and wonderful. Then if we consider also the quality of food, we are in paradise. At my age I am very careful to details and only in this way we can reach important goals”.
Ruta Meilutyte: “The Settecolli is a very beautiful competition, I always enjoyed Rome and here I’m fine. Fans are so warmth and I like to compete in front of this enthusiastic audience. Italy and Rome are an additional value to the races. The federal centre is a very beautiful facility. We are able to have trainings at top levels thanks to FIN that gives us all we need. I am preparing for the World Championships in Kazan to defend the title in 50m-breaststroke, but there are very strong swimmers and reconfirming will be very hard”.