Italy's journey at the Monteceneri MTB European Championships begins with a podium finish. The first smile for the National team comes from Juri Zanotti, who delivered a splendid second-place finish in the Elite XCC race, after competing at the highest level throughout the event and only being decided in the closing stages.

On the Swiss course, made even more selective by the high pace set from the opening stages, Zanotti managed the various phases of the race with clarity, always remaining in contact with the best riders. The battle for the title was decided on the final lap, when British rider Charlie Aldridge managed to gain enough of a margin to claim the European jersey. The Italian crossed the finish line in 19'54", just one second behind the winner, leaving Switzerland's Dario Lillo in third place for the bronze medal. Nadir Colledani finished seventeenth, 1'12" behind the winner.

Zanotti's silver medal represents the best result of the first day for the Italian delegation, which also gathered positive feedback from other categories competing in the Short Track speed races.

Among the Junior women, Angelica Gatto narrowly missed the top five, finishing fifth at the line, with Nicole Azzetti in eighth place: two results that confirm the competitiveness of the Italian group in a category with particularly high standards. In the men's Junior race, it was Riccardo Fasoli who finished among the best, with a ninth-place finish that secured a spot in the continental top ten.

Good results also came from the Under 23 races. Laura Squarise finished twelfth among the women, ahead of Marika Celestino in fifteenth place, while among the men Giulio Peruzzo was the best Italian finisher with sixteenth place, ahead of Gabriel Borre and Marco Betteo. In the women's race, victory went to Swiss rider Lea Huber, while among the men German Paul Schehl took the win.

In the Elite women's race, Sara Cortinovis completed her race in fifteenth place. The European title was claimed by Swiss rider Sina Frei, ahead of fellow Swiss Alessandra Keller and Sweden's Jenny Rissveds.

Present at Monteceneri to closely follow the Italian athletes' races, Federation President Cordiano Dagnoni commented on the first day as follows: "Juri Zanotti's silver medal is the best way to open this European Championship. It's a medal that rewards the athlete's work, the technical staff, and the entire Italian mountain bike movement. Beyond the podium, I'm also pleased to highlight the performances of our young riders, who have shown they can compete with Europe's best. We're only at the beginning of the event, but the team has demonstrated character and quality: we continue to look with confidence toward the upcoming races".

The European Championships program will continue on Friday, July 31st with the Team Relay (XCR), the team relay that will award the continental collective title. Over the weekend, the spotlight will turn to the highly anticipated Cross Country (XCO) races, which will award the European jerseys in the Junior, Under 23, and Elite categories.

ALL RESULTS