Now head to the Italian championship, then retreat to the mountains. This is Simone Barontini’s program in view of the Paris Olympics in August. Before the historic appointment with the five hoops, the middle distance runner from Ancona – recent semi-finalist at the European Championships in Rome – will want to defend the tricolor of the 800 meters outdoors won last year in Molfetta. Today he will face in La Spezia – which this year hosts the Italian athletics championships – the qualifying heat (starting tonight from 8.25pm) to the final of the 800 meters scheduled for tomorrow evening (8pm). Three are competing for the 800 meters title: in addition to ‘our’ Simone Barontini (Fiamme Azzurre), 25 years old, who is hunting for his fifth outdoor title (the tenth of his career if you also count the indoor ones) , an absolute protagonist of the tricolors given that he has triumphed four times in the last five years outdoors, there will also be the Lombard Francesco Pernici (Fiamme Gialle) who is fighting for a place at the Games, but also pay attention to the new Tommaso Maniscalco (Studentesca Milardi Rieti ). The latter clocked a surprising 1:45.57 in Trieste a week ago to materialize his recent rapid growth, quantifiable as almost 3” less than last year. But Simone Barontini also seems to be improving and he demonstrated it about ten days ago with fifth place in Poland, in the Bydgoszcz meeting, in the Gold stage of the Continental Tour with a time of 1:45.11, his season record. “A very good performance, because it showed that it closed with great momentum and therefore was certainly worth a time well under 1:45 – the analysis by Fabrizio Dubbini, Simone Barontini’s coach -. The demonstration of effectiveness in relation to at the European Championship. He’s definitely growing in view of the Olympics, a good step forward and now he’ll want to demonstrate it to the Italian flag.” Even though ‘Baro’ had confided that he was satisfied halfway through the test on the Polish track where he hoped to get below the 1:45 mark. Objective to pursue in this Italian championship where he seeks success also for morale in view of the Olympics. Which he will prepare in the cool of S. Moritz where he will remain for a good part of the month of July to escape the heat of Ancona.
