Dear friends of the CSF EQUA Team,
This year, the World Cup took place in just two stages: Ostend in Belgium, and, as has been the case for several years now, Maniago in Friuli.
It was the first major test for our team, facing off against the top champions on the world stage, including the Americans.
The races in Ostend gave our athletes good reason to hope for an exciting season.
Our athletes brought home 3 golds, 2 silvers, 1 bronze, and three other top-10 finishes.
At the starting line in Maniago, representing both our team and the national team, were: Claudia Cretti, Anamaria Vitelaru, Svetlana Moshkovich, Chiara Colombo, and Elena Bissolati for the tandem category; Riccardo Cadei, Andrea Tarlao, Eduard Moescu, Andrea Casadei, Bernard-Totò for various categories including tandem, and Martino Pini.
On Thursday, May 15 and Friday, May 16, the time trials took place.
Contributing to the challenge was Maniago’s typical weather, where a light daily rain has become a familiar companion.
In the time trials, our athletes had to work hard, with:
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8th place finishes for Riccardo Cadei and Andrea Tarlao in C4 and C5,
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12th and 17th places for Andrea Casadei and Eduard Moescu in C3,
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7th place for the Bernard-Totò pair, just about 40 seconds from the leaders,
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and a strong performance from Martino Pini, who attacked throughout and came in 8th, just 9 seconds off the podium.
On the women’s side, the H4 athletes reached the podium within three seconds of each other:
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an excellent bronze for our Svetlana,
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a silver for Anamaria Vitelaru,
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and a 7th place for Claudia Cretti.
Saturday and Sunday were the road race days.
Claudia Cretti made her presence felt, dominating in the sprint after a strategically controlled race. Having already won in Ostend, she secured the World Cup title.
Less fortunate were Bernard-Totò, who had to withdraw in the first lap due to a gear-shifting issue.
Anamaria Vitelaru had a strong start but had to withdraw shortly after due to a muscle issue; a week of rest is planned ahead of the Italian Championships.
In MC2, 12th and 14th places for Casadei and Moescu, possibly penalized by a questionable classification system. In WH4, Svetlana Moshkovich earned a bronze medal, and Martino Pini finished 8th, only 30 seconds behind the winner.
We wrapped up this World Cup stage with a silver medal in the women’s tandem category, thanks to Chiara Colombo and Elena Bissolati.
Overall, a very satisfying result for our Equa team, undoubtedly among the strongest in the world.
And now, it’s time for the Italian Championships in Castagneto Carducci, Tuscany.
