The debut of the Azzurri on Saturday (it opens with Spain, then a duel with Switzerland) on Swedish ice, in the world championship which does not see the Cortina tandem among the favourites, but in a completely open prediction with many changes for the top nations .
After the world championships for women’s and men’s teams, it is time for the closing world championship event of the 2023/24 season of great curling, with the mixed doubles event scheduled from Saturday 20th to Saturday 27th April in Oestersund.
In the Swedish location, Italy will also be the protagonist with the team made up of the Olympic champion of the specialty, Stefania Constantini, and another young Cortina native, already a world silver medalist at junior level, like Francesco De Zanna, fresh from the satisfaction of having won the bronze world champion, albeit in the alternate role, with Team Retornaz in Schaffhausen just a few days ago.
A new couple for the Italian national team of coach Violetta Caldart and director Claudio Pescia, after the colossal triumph of the 2022 Games with Mosaner alongside Constantini and the last World Cup played by Sebastiano Arman with Stefania.
At least on paper, Italy does not start at the top of the predictions, but it will be a very open challenge in Oestersund with many reference teams that have changed, starting with the United States gold in 2023. Twenty teams at the start, divided into two groups with the first classified who will directly access the semi-finals, while second and third will compete in the qualification games.
The objective of Constantini and De Zanna is to overcome the first phase as the Italian team failed to do a year ago: in their group, the Cortina players will challenge France, Estonia, Denmark, Switzerland, Turkey, Spain, Germany, Japan and Norway. Debut on Saturday morning (10.00 am) against the Iberians, then at 6.00 pm back on the ice for the duel with the Swiss Schwaller.
Group B is made up of the United States, Sweden, Scotland, Australia, Canada, China, Czech Republic, South Korea, the Netherlands and New Zealand.
