Born in Ravenna in 2003, a spiker, 1.84 metres tall, Beatrice Gardini has dreamed of being a volleyball player since she was little, when she went to cheer on her older sister (Alessia, former Teodora setter) and admired Francesca Piccinini’s actions on television. Today, with two seasons of A1 behind us, two years of Club Italia and four junior world championships (of which one won) is preparing to play its first European Championship with the Under 22 national teamwhich will be held in Lecce and Copertino from 1st to 6th July.
The Europeans with the junior national team upon us
«Playing in the blue shirt is always an indescribable emotion. The attachment to the blue shirt is a totally different thing, even if only for the fact that the anthem is sung before every match. It gives you chills and pushes you to do your best. This time I’m even more excited because it will be my first European Championship”, says Gardini.
The blue they will play the first match of the group on July 1st at 9pm against Latviathen, the following day they will continue at the same time against theUkraine and they will conclude the group on July 3 against Türkiye.
«We definitely do let’s aim for the medal, possibly to the most precious one. Then how things will go will be understood as we go. Among the strongest teams already in the group we will meet Turkey and, in general, we will have to keep an eye on Serbia, who have always been among the most competent youth national teams”, he says.
Beatrice Gardini: «Next season? I return to Perugia in A1, where they gave me a lot of trust”
Gardini played for the first time in the top A1 championship in the shirt of Perugia in 2022/2023, where he will return to compete in the next sports season, after a year Vallefogliaa team in which he found another volleyball player from Ravenna, Sara Panetoni.
«I had a great time in Perugia. The year I played there we were relegated, so volleyball-wise it wasn’t one of the best years; However, the club is close-knit and has always given me a lot of trust. Even though I was very young, he gave me the opportunities I “deserved”, arriving at the end of the season as a starter. The fact that after two years they continue to believe in me, giving me the chance to start, is very important to me and therefore I am very happy to return”, he says Gardini.
Before arriving in Perugia on the A1, Beatrice Gardini – who is now 21 years old – came from three years of A2, one of which in Sassuolo and two at Club Italia, a team linked to the national team that brings together promising youth players from all over the area. However, it all started in the Giallorossi shirt, when she was a very young girl playing in the ranks of the Theodora Ravenna (today Mosaico Volley).
«If I had to give advice to anyone who dreams of playing volleyball, I would say not to focus too much on mistakes»
«I really started to believe I could become a volleyball player – she says – when the first calls came from teams wanting me out of Ravenna. I was very young then and it wasn’t a given that my parents would give me the opportunity to leave home. We talked about it and they always supported me. So I left Ravenna when I was 14 and had to start secondary school. I first did two years in Modena and then two years of Club Italia in Milan.”
«If I had to give some advice to a girl who wants to be a volleyball player – she says -, I would tell her not to focus too much on her mistakes or what she does worst: to work at it, but without it becoming an obsession. For years I gave too much weight to those who told me that I couldn’t become a real band because I wasn’t good at reception. Then, I realized that focusing on negative things becomes a mental block. And then I started working on it more calmly, without giving too much weight to what they told me from the outside. That was a turning point,” she explains.
“The next goals I’m definitely going to give my all at the European Championships next week. Then, for the next few seasons, the goal is to earn an ever greater space in the A1 championship. In the medium to long term, however, the dream is to be called up by the senior national team and be able to make my contribution”, concludes Beatrice Gardini.
Read also: Alessandro Bovolenta in the national team: Olympics goal. “Next season? I’m jumping to A1, perhaps in Piacenza”
