Gregorio Paltrinieri Swims 14:44 in 1500 Free as Italian Championships Conclude; Martinenghi, Pilato Post Quick 50 Breast Times
On the final day of the Italian Championships, one of the premier distance swimmers in the world posted his second victory. Two days after swimming a 7:46.88 in the 800 free, Gregorio Paltrinieri dominated the men’s 1500 freestyle and recorded a time of 14:44.39. The 27-year-old Paltrinieri is the second-fastest swimmer in history in the event, and while he was more than 10 seconds off his lifetime best, the swim was faster than his effort from the 2021 Olympic final, where Paltrinieri ended up fourth.
Paltrinieri did win two medals in Tokyo, a silver in the 800 free and a bronze in the 10k open water race, an impressive haul after he was diagnosed with mononucleosis just one month before the swimming competition began. Paltrinieri was the Olympic gold medalist in the 1500 free in 2016 and the world champion in the event in 2015 and 2017, and he is likely to face off with rivals Florian Wellbrock (Germany), Mykhailo Romanchuk (Ukraine), Bobby Finke (USA) and others at this summer’s World Championships in Budapest.
Another Olympic medalist recording a quick performance was Nicolo Martinenghi, the bronze medalist in the 100 breast in Tokyo. Martinenghi won the men’s 50 breaststroke in a strong time of 26.49, well ahead of the 26.85 posted by teenager Simone Cerasuolo. In the women’s 50 breast, world-record holder Bendetta Pilato picked up the title in 29.85, well off her top mark of 29.30 and also behind her prelims time of 29.58. Arianna Castiglioni, Italy’s national-record holder in the 100 breast placed second to Pilato in 30.34.
In the 400 freestyle, Simona Quadarella placed first in 4:08.72, good enough to win by eight tenths. Quadarella is the reigning world champion in the 1500 freestyle, and she took silver in the 800 free at the 2019 World Championships and bronze in that event at the Tokyo Olympics. Later on, two-time European champion Magherita Panziera comfortably won the women’s 200 backstroke in 2:08.63. Alberto Razzetti, the eighth-place finisher in the men’s 400 IM final in Tokyo, won the national title in his best event in 4:13.83, while the final event of the meet, the women’s 50 butterfly, went to Silvia Di Pietro in 26.08.