Superhero marathon. Medal that adds to the silver earned in the 800 freestyle pool
history
Angelo Di Marino
SENT TO TOKYO
Like a superhero. It is Greg Paltrinieri, third in the swimming marathon, that of the ten kilometers. A bronze that is added to the silver earned in the pool on the 800 freestyle. «I won’t hide it: I had come here for three golds. Try again in Paris? They are like Juve, I continue to chase him but … I want to try again. If it were up to me, I would already do it next week », he says after the most grueling race of all, held in the waters of the Odaiba Nautical Base in Tokyo.
The podium is strictly European: victory to the German Florian Wellbrock (1h48’33 ”7), in front of the Hungarian Kristof Rasovszky and our Greg. A success that for the blue comes after “two months of hell”, marked by mononucleosis that seemed to even prevent him from being at the Games. With a lot of willpower and a good dose of courage, the 26-year-old from Carpi instead not only competed in the Olympics but also earned two medals. To Greg’s inner strength, Don Gionatan De Marco, the chaplain of the Azzurri, yesterday dedicated his daily open letter.
And to think that only on June 23, one month before the Games, Greg had discovered that he had caught the “disease of fatigue”. «This medal is one of the most suffered: I told myself I didn’t want to leave Tokyo without getting on the podium. And I did it because I deserve it – says Paltrinieri – I can’t have regrets, I can’t change that disease. The condition was not there, the head was: and in these conditions I fought like a warrior. Today I have three medals in three different specialties – he concludes by combining the gold of Rio with those of Tokyo – But I did everything I could, and this makes me proud ».
The worst is over, now it’s time for Greg to enjoy the medals and joke with friends, one for all Gianmarco Tamberi: “It was great to see him win, I must say that he is the person I love most among those who are here, it gave me an incredible boost. Between me and Gimbo I see many similarities. I complained to a small extent about how I got to this Olympics but I have to take inspiration from him, who after Rio was reborn from nothing, when everything seemed over. We will make up for it with 3×3 Olympic basketball with Gigi Datome, but I am scandalous, the weak link. They would throw us out immediately. ‘ –
© breaking latest news