There was an Italian double at the European Champion Clubs Cup Group B in Leiria, Portugal on Saturday (27) with Atletica Riccardi winning the men’s team competition and ASD Bracco Atletica following suit in the women’s competition.
One of the most eye-catching performances of the competition was a standout display from Alessandro Sibilo. The 18-year-old won the 400m hurdles at the inaugural European U18 Athletics Championships in Tbilisi, Georgia last summer and he had the beating of some established seniors in the 400m, setting a lifetime best of 47.19 ahead of Denis Danac (47.55) and Luke Lennon-Ford (47.62).
With Sibilo contesting the 400m flat, his clubmate Mario Lambrughi duly won the 400m hurdles in 50.36. They returned to action in the 4x400m relay in which they helped Atletica Riccardi to a full complement of points, winning in 3:13.06.
Atletica Riccardi totalled 97 points ahead of Slovakian side AC Stavbar Nitra (78) which was helmed by up-and-coming sprinter Jan Volko, who won a silver medal in the 60m at the European Indoor Athletics Championships in Belgrade in March.
Volko, 20, did sterling duly for the team, winning the 100m in 10.37 and the 200m in 20.73 - just 0.07 shy of his national record - before anchoring the team to a second place finish in the 4x100m relay.
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In the women’s competition, ASD Bracco Atletica comprehensively won the team title with 133 points ahead of Dutch team Phanos with 107 points. The Italian club tallied six victories over the course of the afternoon, the best of them being Sara Balduchelli’s 13.75 clocking in the 100m hurdles.
Another standout performance came courtesy of European U18 1500m and 3000m champion Delia Sclabas. Competing for LC Bern, the 16-year-old won the 3000m in a lifetime best of 9:12.98.
Full results are available on the event website here.
The ECCC Senior Group A competition scheduled for Mersim, Türkiye, was cancelled.