Less than a week to go Gala of the Castles 2023, which promises to be a unique edition with the parterre of sportsmen who will arrive in Locarno and Bellinzona, Switzerland, to give life to the sporting event of the year.
They will be 175 medal-winning athletes present with ten medals at the recent World Championships in Budapest, including 3 world champions: Gianmarco Tamberi Femke Bol and Daniel Stahl – to which must also be added six Olympic gold medals from the latest Tokyo edition.
Gianmarco Tamberi will be in Ticino for the first time and will be welcomed by World Champion by the Ticino public, which has always shown its warmth to the great stars of world athletics.
Daniel Stahl also arrives in Bellinzona as World Champion, after having played an extraordinary discus throwing match against world vice-champion Kristjan Ceh, who was also in the shadow of the Castelli together with the Swede.
At the women’s discus throw the reigning Olympic champion and vice-champion at the Budapest World Cup Valarie Allman. Femke Bol was one of the absolute protagonists in Hungary, conquering two world gold medals: one in her race – the 400 hurdles -, and the second as a protagonist in the last fraction of an incredible comeback, which earned her nation the gold in the 4X400.
The Olympic champion of the 100m hurdles Jasmine Camacho-Quinn is back in Bellinzona again this year: the athlete from Puerto Rico silver in Budapest with 12″44 will be in the starting blocks with two other finalists from Budapest, the American Nia Ali Ditaji and home athlete Kambundji.
A great protagonist of the world spin will be at the starting blocks of the 100m: the Jamaican Elaine Thompson-Herah, silver medalist in Budapest in the 4x100m and reigning Olympic champion in the 100m and 200m in Tokyo; with her the American Tamara Clark with a seasonal personal of 10.98 (number 10 in the world in the ranking), and Mujinga Kambundji.
Among the fastest men in the world race Ferdinand Omanyala, the Kenyan world finalist and holder of the absolute best third time during the season; together with him another great athlete who has always been fond of the Galà dei Castelli: the reigning Olympic champion of the 200m Andrè De Grasse, protagonist of a growing season finale after winning the final in Budapest.
To complete the great parterre of the men’s 100m, the bronze medal of the 4X100, and fourth classified at the World Championships, Oblique Seville. The Olympic champion of the 100m hurdles Jasmine Camacho-Quinn is back again this year in Bellinzona.
The athlete from Puerto Rico silver in Budapest with 12″44, will be in the starting blocks with our home athlete Ditaji Kambundji, world finalist, with the American Nia Ali, and with the European champion Pia Skrzyszowska. The athlete also returns to Ticino Brazilian athlete Alison Dos Santos, reigning Olympic bronze, who will run the 400m hurdles.
There were also many Italian athletes present, most of whom have just taken part in the World Championships in Budapest:
- Eleonora Marchiando 400m hurdles,
- Stefano Sottile high jump,
- Andrea Federici 100m,
- Federico Guglielmi 100m,
- Elena Bellò 800m,
- Eloisa Leather 800m,
- Mario Lambrughi 400m hurdles,
- Zaynab Dosso 100m,
- Chiara Melon 100m,
- Pietro Arese 1500m,
- Davide Re 400m,
- Dalia Kaddari 200m.
On 3 September, the day before the international meeting, the pole vaulters will take to the podium at the City Event in the city center of Locarno. The event will be free and open to all the public, and is scheduled in Largo Zorzi.
On the platform 7 athletes among the 13 strongest in the world: among these one of the greatest protagonists ever in the discipline, the American Sandi Morris, world and Olympic silver medalist, the British Holly Bradshaw, bronze medalist of the Tokyo Olympics, and the Italians Roberta Bruni and Elisa Molinarolo.
Tickets for the international meeting in Bellinzona are available online on the official website https://www.galadeicastelli.ch/biglietti/ and will be available until 3.00 pm on Monday 4 September – at a reduced price. It will then be possible to purchase tickets on the evening of the event at the entrance to the Stadio Comunale ticket office.