Italy's Valentina Trapletti at the 2017 World Championships in London (© Getty Images)
Tokyo Olympians Valentina Trapletti, Francesco Fortunato and Federico Tontodonati are among the 22 athletes named on the Italian team for the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships Muscat 22 on 4-5 March.
Multiple national champion Trapletti finished 18th in Tokyo in a women’s 20km race walk final won by her compatriot Antonella Palmisano, while Fortunato was 15th and Tontodonati 44th in the men’s 20km event, which was won by their fellow Italian Massimo Stano.
Lidia Barcella, who claimed two medals in the 35km event at last year’s European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady, contests that same distance in Oman along with Nicole Colombi, who won team silver at the 2018 World Race Walking Team Championships, and Federica Curiazzi, Vittoria Giordani and Sara Vitiello.
Last year’s European U23 bronze medallist Andrea Cosi joins Fortunato and Tontodonati in the men’s 20km team, as do 2018 European U18 10,000m race walk champion Davide Finocchietti and Gianluca Picchiottino.
The men’s 35km team features Rio Olympic 20km eighth-place finisher Matteo Giupponi, 2019 European U20 10,000m race walk silver medallist Riccardo Orsoni, 2018 European U18 10,000m race walk runner-up Aldo Andrei, Stefano Chiesa and Michele Antonelli, who claimed 50km bronze at the 2017 European Race Walking Team Championships.
Italian team for Muscat
Women
20km: Valentina Trapletti
35km: Lidia Barcella, Nicole Colombi, Federica Curiazzi, Vittoria Giordani, Sara Vitiello
U20 10km: Vittoria Di Dato, Sofia Fiorini, Giada Traina
Men
20km: Andrea Cosi, Davide Finocchietti, Francesco Fortunato, Gianluca Picchiottino, Federico Tontodonati
35km: Aldo Andrei, Michele Antonelli, Stefano Chiesa, Matteo Giupponi, Riccardo Orsoni
U20 10km: Diego Giampaolo, Nicola Lomuscio, Pietro Notaristefano
