Bruno and Schembri highlight the Italian championships in Milan

Milan, ItalyItalian Pole Vault record holder Anna Giordano Bruno and Triple Jumper Fabrizo Schembri produced the best result at the Italian Championships in Milan over the weekend, which returned to the Northern Italian City after nine years.

Milan hosted the 99th edition of the Italian Championships in the historic Napoleonic Arena Civica on a very hot weekend with the temperature rising to over 30°C.

Bruno continues steady climb in the vault, improves to 4.60m

Bruno, a European Indoor finalist in Torino 2009, improved her PB again from 4.55m to 4.60m (tenth best performance in the world this year). Not content with her new record, Anna tried three unsuccesful attempts at 4.65m. Bruno vaulted her previous national records in Lignano Sabbiadoro on 12 July with 4.46m and then in Trieste last week with 4.51m and 4.55m. In Milan she raised the bar to 4.60m which she vaulted in her first attempt. It is an impressive performance for the graduate in mathematics at the University of Udine who is not a full-time athlete, as she trains only in the afternoon after her job at the University of Padua where she works as a researcher.

Bruno, who is coached by Slovenian Igor Lapajne, set her 12th national record (nine outdoors and three indoors)and won her fifth national title, her third in a row outdoors.

“I started with pole vault in 1997,” Bruno said. “Last year I had a PB of 4.41 but I knew that I could jump higher but in 2008 I faced difficult conditions. I live in San Vito al Tagliamento but I move to Nova Goriza to be coached by Igor Lapajne. I did not expect a new record because I thought that 4.55 was a great result for me.”

Schembri's consistency improves

The historic Napoleonic Stadium was also the stage for the superb performance by Fabrizio Schembri, who leapt to 17.24m in the Triple Jump. Schembri, who is ranked third on the Italian all-time list with 17.27m set this year in Turin, missed his PB by just three centimetres. Italy will be represented by three men in Berlin: European Indoor champion Fabrizio Donato, who is recovering from a serious injury, Schembri and Daniele Greco, who won gold at the European Under 23 Championships in Kaunas with 17.20m, the Italian Under 23 record.

“I aim at the final in Berlin and at finishing near the podium”, said Schembri, who is ranked eighth in the world this year. 

Libania Grenot won unchallenged the women’s 400 metres in 51.52. The Cuban-born Grenot, an Olympic semifinalist in Beijing, grabbed the headlines last month at the Mediterranean Games in Pescara where she clocked 50.30 setting the Italian record and the seventh fastest time in the world this year.

“I expect a great result in Berlin. I will have to run very fast in the heats and in the semifinals to qualify for the final. I have great hopes for a good result with the 4x400 relay”, said Grenot, who is also known by her nickname ‘Panterita (the panther)’.

Collio takes 100m title

The men’s 100m final was the other big highlight of Milano 2009. The promisising results produced by Italian sprinters during the 2009 season with three men able to set the A-qualifying standard for the World Championships in Berlin raised the expectations for a great final in Milan.

Unfortunately 2009 European Indoor silver medallist Fabio Cerutti, who ran 10.15 in La Chaux de Fonds in June, picked up a minor injury in training and visibly eased up in the heats after 50 metres in order not to worsen the injury as a precautionary measure. European bronze medallist Emanuele Di Gregorio, who set his PB this year with 10.21, also got an injury and did not start the final. Simone Collio cruised to a 10.27to win the title unopposed into a headwind of -0.8 m/s in front of his home crowd as he was born in Cernusco sul Naviglio, a small town nar Milan. Last week Collio sensationally clocked 10.06 in a low-key regional meeting in Rieti, setting the second fastest time in Italian athletics history. Only Italian sprint legend Pietro Mennea ran faster than Collio with 10.01 in 1979 in Mexico City. Collio also finished second in the 200m behind Roberto Donati, winner in 20.86 to 20.88. 

“The conditions were very difficult today,”said Collio. “There was a headwind and it was too hot and humid. The Milan track is not very fast. The most important thing was to re-confirm my level. It was special to win this title in front of my parents, my cousins and my friends. I am sorry for my rivals and national teammates Fabio Cerutti and Emanuele Di Gregorio who picked minor injuries, which are not serious ahead of Berlin. Our main goal is the 4x100 relay. We are a good team and we can aim for a final in Berlin.”

Brugnetti defeats Schwazer

Former 20 km Race Walk Olympic champion Ivano Brugnetti took a gun-to-tape win in the men’s 10,000m Walking in 40:19.93. Another olympic champion Alex Schwazer, who won the 50 km last year in Beijing, finished a distant second in 41:26.55.

“It was a good test considering that I made a hard training session in the morning. I need to recover from the training at altitude but I feel in good form. I will now reduce the workload to be in top form in Berlin,” said Brugnetti. 

European Indoor bronze medallist Elisa Cusma showed good form in the women’s 800m in 2:00.61 in her final test before Berlin where she will aim for the 800m final. Cusma will run the 800m where she is now ranked 10th in the world seasonal list with her 1:58.99 set in the Paris Golden League meeting.

“I will run the 800 metres and I will not double with the 1500 metres although I ran 4:04.98 in Athens. I will train in Vipiteno to prepare for Berlin. My goal is to reach the final, but I know it will be a difficult task,” said Cusma.

The big surprise of the two-day championships came from Matteo Galvan, European Indoor champion with the 4x400 relay in Turin last March, who set a huge PB in the 400m final clocking 45.88 (he had a previous outdoor PB of 47.10, but ran 46.26 indoors finishing in the European Indoor Championships final). Galvan, a World Youth Championships bronze medallist in the 200m in Marrakesh 2005 and fourth in the 200m at the European Under 23 Championships in Kaunas with his PB of 20.62, is qualified for Berlin with the B standard in both the 200 and the 400m but may opt for the half-lap race.

Olympic and world finalist Clarissa Claretti took the win in the women’s hammer throw with 70.56m in the second attempt. Claretti threw three times over the 70 metres barrier in the first three attempts. Her full series: 70.43m - 70.56m - 70.37m-foul-69.68m-68.81m. Claretti was the only athlete able to throw over 70 metres, as Silvia Salis, this year’s Mediterranean Games winner, finished second with 68.59m. “It was a good test, although I could produce a further throw. I am working hard for Berlin where I aim at improving my result at the Olympic Games,” said Claretti.

Nicola Vizoni, former Olympic silver medallist in Sydney 2000, won the 19th Italian title in the men’s Hammer Throw with a best of 77.73m in the fourth attempt. Vizzoni is currently sixth in the world seasonal list with 79.74m.

Elena Romagnolo, Olympic finalist and Italian record holder in the women’s 3000m Steeplechase, won the 1500m at a canter in 4:13.64 (she set her PB over this distance this year with 4:07.98 in Warsaw).

World Championships finalist Chiara Rosa notched up the women’s Shot put title with a best release to 18.30m in the second attempt.

Nicola Ciotti clinched the men’s High Jump title with 2.28m in his third attempt. Alessandro Talotti finished second with 2.25m on a countback over Giulio Ciotti who cleared 2.31m last week in Formia.

Mario Scapini, the 2007 European Junior champion in the 1500m, scored a double win in the 800 and the 1500 metres in front of his home town crowd.

Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF