The champion and the promise, pride of Lecco, protagonists in Bologna
The first of the two Olympic qualification tests for Bea will be held in China on May 17th: “Now more than ever we need a training facility”
LECCO – “What, frankly, was not expected so soon, has already happened”. Italian Speed Cup semi-final in Bologna: on the one hand Beatrice Collion the other Alice Marcelli, the new young promise of the Ragni sport climbing team. Like Bea in 2019, also a Boulder and Speed youth national team; like Bea when she entered the Senior world ready to fight for a podium.
“Obviously huge gap and in the end, after the third-fourth place final, Alice will be fourth,
while Beatrice will collect yet another victory, cursing as in a defeat for one
final slip of foot that will stop the timer in 7″12 – she explains the coach Fabio Palma -. A time that would have been an Italian record 12 months ago, but now Beatrice always aims to go below 7″, the barrier that separates the very strong from the elite of the best 10 in the world”.
Beatrice Colli has fallen below that barrier three times and on May 17th in China there will be the first of the two Olympic qualifying tests: “The form is there, for 2024 so far I’m rating 10 and no regrets, total dedication and self-discipline , an evident physical and technical growth. Lots of travel, even too many. We know the problem, there is no complete structure in Lecco, the times of politics are on the verge of extinction, there is no respect either for the Champions or for those who simply want to play sport – Palma vents -. Beatrice, Valentina and Alice have to go to Milan even 4 times a week, it’s funny to hear Lecco being the capital of climbing. It is not among the top 50 Italian locations in which to practice it. Only the Polytechnic of Lecco is capable of understanding what it means to do sport. A world athlete like Bea in many other places, including Italian ones, would have quick support in everything, but that’s how it goes. In sport, one day, just one day, late is a problem. One week a huge problem. For many, it’s normal to postpone a meeting or decision for a month. There is no professionalism, respect, nothing. Many adults should sit down and listen to a lecture from these athletes and take notes on how to plan and stick to a week of hard, concrete work. Bea won today and was furious with herself for not being perfect. For her, being close to perfection in her work is a defeat. Let us learn to work like this every day. This is sport at the highest levels, being an athlete means being irreproachable.”
