Enrico Morina (Fraglia Vela Riva) is the new ILCA 4 Youth European Champion
Murcia – Exciting news for Fraglia Vela Riva comes from Murcia: Enrico Morina, a member of the ILCA Racing Team coached by Mauro Berteotti, has won the ILCA 4 Youth European title.
Morina, who beat a fleet of nearly two hundred and fifty sailors, started slowly, with three double-digit times, but then demonstrated remarkable competitive resilience. From the third day, he began to make up ground, easily overcoming the setback he experienced in the first of the six final races. His subsequent progression served to close the deal, relegating Greece’s Stefanos Samaras and Switzerland’s Leo Gosgling to second and third place, both significantly behind.
The young Fragliotto athlete said: “It was an intense and emotional week. The championship certainly didn’t start in the best way, but I didn’t stop believing. Day after day, I climbed the rankings, but the real turning point came from third place, followed by good consistency in the final series. This victory would have been impossible without my parents, to whom I am infinitely grateful, and of course coach Mauro, as well as the entire team who celebrated the victory with me.”
In addition to Enrico Morina, among the men representing the Via Giancarlo Maroni club were Leandro Scialpi (23rd), Villiam Osipovs (93rd), and Marco Aloisi (128th).
In the women’s race, Sofia Berteotti put in a solid performance, finishing twelfth, with Mia Paoletti (71st) seventeenth in the Under 16s.
“It was a very tough trip, starting with the two canceled flights that put the whole team in difficulty. We arrived just right for the sizes and for the first day of racing with wind gusts above 25 knots. Racing in qualifying with four fleets is always difficult; if you get the wrong day, it’s hard to get into the Gold. In the finals, we knew we could make a lot of gains, and when we saw that the leaders were struggling, Enrico took action and ultimately built up a solid lead, allowing him to sail the final race with confidence. Among the women, Sofia finished an excellent twelfth, but unfortunately, with the light wind on the last day, she had some difficulties that prevented her from making the top ten after six days of different conditions,” commented Mauro Berteotti, Technical Director and Coach of the Fraglia Vela Riva ILCA Team.
Fraglia Vela Riva President Chiara Carloni expressed great satisfaction at her first major international success since being elected: “Congratulations to Enrico Morina, coach Mauro Bertotti, and all the team members for their achievements in Spain. We celebrate a result that recognizes the athlete’s flair and the solidity of a training method capable of bringing the club numerous rewards in a competitive class like ILCA. Working with young people has always been in Fraglia Vela Riva’s DNA, and this is further confirmation of that.”
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