Boxing, Picardi wants first professional title

In "his" Cardito, the city that has adopted him as a sportsman, Vincenzo Picardi—a bronze medalist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics—is chasing his first professional title, the Italian Bantamweight title. At 36 years old and in his second pro match, Picardi is aiming for the national champion crown and then attempting to climb the ladder to the European title. He couldn't have hoped for a better setting for this momentous undertaking: the Nemea Energy Village in Cardito (Saturday, December 21, 9:30 pm), the facility built by the Castaldo Group that boasts over 5.000 square meters dedicated to sports and wellness. A Southern Italian excellence, as Picardi himself explains, who here as a coach trains a large group of amateur boxers: "I found an extraordinary group," Picardi explains, "which first gave me the opportunity to mentally recover after the disappointment of failing to qualify for Rio 2016, then allowed me to train and train, and finally gave me the chance to aim for the Italian professional title."

The Olympian is training non-stop these days, with one goal: to triumph in the challenge scheduled for Saturday, in the key match of the fifth Umberto Cavini memorial, promoted by Rosanna Conti Cavini. Facing the bronze medalist from Beijing 2008 will be Pio Antonio Nettuno, a boxer from Cesenatico, who has already fought for both the Italian and European Union titles. Ten rounds are scheduled: “I’m pumped up – adds Picardi – also because I will be stepping into the ring at the Nemea Energy Village for Miriam and Salvatore Castaldo, Piero Izzo and the manager Giada Punzo, who is now my family here in Cardito. Without forgetting the athletic trainer Vincenzo Gargiulo, with whom I have been training since the end of 2016 and who has become a brother to me. Without him, my rebirth as a professional would have been impossible”.

The match for the Italian title will be preceded by a series of other matches, among which stands out the professional debut of Marco Giannetti, a promising middleweight of just 19 years old. Giannetti, over a distance of six rounds, will have to deal with the Venetian boxer Rodolfo Bernini.