Shot put star Leonardo Fabbri has had plenty to celebrate this year, so it was fitting that he burst into song in October’s season ending Golden Track awards, regaling the audience to sign off a year where he hit the high notes.
The highlight was of course, his victory in front of an adoring home crowd at the Roma 2024 European Athletics Championships with gold in a championship best 22.45m, which he discusses on the latest episode of the Ignite series of interviews with leading athletes on the European Athletics YouTube channel.
There was also disappointment at the Paris Olympics. But along the way, he won two Diamond League meetings, added 64cm to his personal best to break the Italian national record and claimed some major scalps, including two victories over three-times Olympic champion Ryan Crouser.
A Roman dream
“Rome was like a dream,” he recalled of his night of glory in the Stadio Olimpico. “I was growing up watching on YouTube, the European champs, the world champs, the Olympics. And I was dreaming one day of being in the shoot next to a lot of crowd, big crowd, a big stadium and that was Rome.”
Of the competition itself, he says: “The preparation was perfect. So, I was really in a great shape. But I felt really stressed because it was for me the first time that I came to a main event, and I was the (one) to beat.
“So, I remember I immediately called my mental coach. I said, ‘Listen, I know that looks easy, but I'm so stressed.’ Please say something and you really help me help it. And yeah, the qualification was fine. Just 21.10m.
“Then we went to the stage on the 8th of June for the final and the remember (when) we jump off from the bus, a lot of people cheering, screaming, asking for picture. The stadium went like crazy. I love football and I love football atmosphere and that look exactly like football stadium.
“Yeah, first round was not perfect, but second one over 22. I knew that with 22 you win everything in Europe right now. So, I was really confident. I enjoy every single minute, every single moment. And then also the medal ceremony was beautiful because there were a lot of people cheering and singing the national anthem and (it) was nice.”
Team spirit
His was one of 11 gold medals in an incredible championships for the home nation, whose collective success earned them the Team Spirit award at Golden Tracks collected by Fabbri in Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia on 26 October.
But the camaraderie cannot be taken for granted.
Fabbri recalls his first European Championships in Berlin 2018: “I was seeing there was something wrong with the team because we had a lot of people (aged) from 35 to 40 and like me, very young, (it was the) first time being in the national team.
“A lot of people just walking by each other, not like a big group. And now we almost everybody same age, the oldest age is like 32, 33.
“So we considered each other family, we (are) really friends. We support each other every during the season. I always receive call(s) and messages from the other guys and that's really helped because you get very big stress, but you see friends around and you can talk.”
Mental and physical progression
Fabbri has developed both physically and mentally in recent years, transforming his fortunes on the international circuit. He teamed up with a sports psychologist who has worked with Serie A Football Team Fiorentina, the side the Florence-born athlete supports.
“We are athletes, we perform, we compete. But first, we are human like everybody,” he says. “So, for us it's very important to be healthy. I have a mental coach, and we work, we speak almost every day at meditation.”
He has also shed a lot of weight since a low point when he suffered from COVID and a groin injury in successive years in 2020 and 2021. “I struggled, then I decided to lose weight. I lost 25 kgs and since that I've been consistent. I'm not strong, so I need to be quick. And losing weight for me has been amazing,” he reveals.
In great shape mentally and physically, it enabled him to land a superb silver with 22.34m, behind three-times champion and world record holder Crouser (USA) at the Budapest 2023 World Athletics Championships, a result that laid the foundations for a brilliant 2024.
Olympic lessons
It also gave him confidence he could take on the seemingly unbeatable Crouser. “That guy's like a machine,” smiles the affable Fabbri. “He had almost 300 throws in his career over 22m. So right now, maybe it’s not that easy to win. But when you win, you know that you have done something amazing.”
He got the better of the American for the first time this year, in Diamond League meetings in London and Brussels. But disappointingly, the Italian couldn’t produce his best form at the Paris Olympics, where Crouser landed his third successive old.
“Maybe the rain in the last three rounds was a little bit tough for me,” he says of the Olympic final, where he finished fifth with 21.70m “I mean, I'm good with rain. I threw 22.88 (Modena, 1 May) this season with the rain, but there was something wrong with the circle. Round one was great, was probably 22 80m, but I touched the board.
“Great shape, great expectation. But it's fine. I learned a lot from there,” says the 27 year old, with more Olympic cycles still in his sights.
Motivated for 2025
His season-closing victory at the Diamond League Final in Brussels with a monstrous national record of 22.98m beating Crouser and the rest of the world’s best, restored his confidence leading into 2025.
A big year awaits and Fabbri is targeting both the Apeldoorn 2025 European Indoor Championships (6-9 March) and the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China (21-23 March) during the indoor season. Plus of course, the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo (13-21 September).
“I'm really motivated,” he says. “I really want to perform in 2025.” If he continues to improve, then next year could be the year where the Italian is calling the tune on the global stage.
Chris Broadbent for European Athletics