A grand spectacle in Merano. © Ilaria Giorgi / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

Cool Swim Meeting: Spectacular events and records in Merano

The second day of competition at the tenth edition of the Cool Swim Meeting produced five more event records.

June 20, 2026

From: pm/det

Numerous athletes shone in the afternoon at the Merano Lido with top-level performances. Favorites Simone Cerasuolo and Lisa Angiolini lived up to expectations, while the Brazilian team won a total of four gold medals.

The highlight of the afternoon was the 50m breaststroke. World champion Simone Cerasuolo confirmed his excellent form, securing gold and a new meet record. The Italian, competing for Imolanuoto, won in 26,78 seconds, ahead of his teammate Federico Poggio, who finished second in 27,82. Third place went to Andrea Prapugicu (Virtus Buonconvento) in 28,43.

Cerasuolo feels good

“Merano simply suits me, and I feel extremely comfortable here. I am really very satisfied with my time – I had hoped to swim fast, and that's exactly what I managed to do,” said Cerasuolo after the race.

Lisa Angiolini's dominance continued in the women's competition. The Tuscan swimmer secured the last remaining breaststroke record, clocking a strong 30,72 seconds. Nika Godun (Aqua Alpha, 31,32) and Viviane Graif (Sportclub Meran, 32,09) took the other podium positions.

Simone Cerasuolo came out trumps. © Ilaria Giorgi / Ilaria Giorgi / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

Among the outstanding athletes of the afternoon was Brazilian Guilherme Caribé, who won two more gold medals. At the start of the session, the RSP Sports swimmer won the 50m butterfly in 23,33 seconds, setting a new meet record. He relegated Daniele Momoni (Team Italia, 24,05) and Larbi Giacomini (Team Friuli FIN, 24,08) to second and third place, respectively. He concluded the session with a victory in the 100m freestyle in 48,69 seconds – just five hundredths of a second off Thomas Ceccon's record. Manuel Frigo (48,98) and Matteo Oppioli (50,04) finished behind him.

Italian Gastaldi shines

Italian swimmer Anita Gastaldi of V02 Nuoto Torino also won two gold medals. First, she triumphed in the 50m butterfly in 27,42 seconds, beating Alice Groppo (Montebelluna Nuoto, 27,55) and Elena Missora (Aly Sport, 27,62). She then surprised everyone by winning the 100m freestyle in 55,54 seconds, ahead of Sofia Morini (Team Italia, 55,81) and Anna Chiara Mascolo (Team Italia, 56,05).

“Three gold medals are truly an outstanding haul – it couldn’t have gone much better. I’m really very satisfied with how these competitions have gone so far,” the Turin native commented enthusiastically.

A grand spectacle

The afternoon, broadcast live on RAI channels, began with the 200m freestyle. Brazilian Gabi Roncatto (Unisanta, 2:00,16) won her second gold medal of the event, relegating – as she had already done in the 400m freestyle – her compatriot Maria Paula Heitmann (Sesc RJ, 2:01,44) to second place. Evita Trevisan (Team Veneto FIN, 2:03,31) finished third.

Things got down to business in Meran. © Ilaria Giorgi / Ilaria Giorgi / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

The men's race was an exciting one: Alessandro Ragaini (1:49,35) defended his lead after a start-to-finish victory against the strong final attack by Davide Dalla Costa (1:49,43) and Giovanni Caserta (1:49,74).

In the 400m individual medley, victories went to Giada Alzetta (Team Italia) in 4:44,81 and Brandonn Almeida (SESC RJ) in 4:21,00. Clarissa Savoldi (Team Toscana FIN, 4:48,50) and Alessia Capitanio (Team Friuli FIN, 4:56,46) also finished on the women's podium. In the men's event, Federico Tormena (Team Veneto FIN, 4:33,01) and Davide Nolli (Nuotatori Milanesi, 4:34,67) completed the podium.

Team Italia excels in the relays

The afternoon program also included the 1500m freestyle. In the women's race, Mahila Spennato (Rari Nantes Florentia) prevailed in 16:52,48, beating the exhausted Gabi Roncatto (16:59,82) and Letizia Gioffredi (Rari Nantes Florentia, 16:59,93). In the men's race, Ivan Sartor (Team Veneto FIN) won in 15:42,71, ahead of Giuseppe Marco Sinagra (Team Veneto FIN, 15:49,10) and Andrea D'Apote (Team Toscana FIN, 15:55,52).

The day concluded with the 4x50m medley relays, which provided great excitement. Team Italy triumphed in both the men's and women's events, setting new meet records in each.

Big cheers from Anita Gastaldi, Anna Pirovano, Giada Alzetta and Anna Chiara Mascolo. © Ilaria Giorgi / Ilaria Giorgi / Deepbluemedia / Insidefoto

In the men's competition, Mirko Chiaversoli, Federico Poggio, Daniele Momoni and Giovanni Caserta finished with a time of 1:39,59, ahead of the team from Friuli (1:42,83) and the team from Emilia-Romagna (1:43,04).

In the women's race, Anita Gastaldi, Anna Pirovano, Giada Alzetta and Anna Chiara Mascolo won in 1:53,92 ahead of Virtus Buonconvento (1:55,36) and the team from Veneto (1:58,46).

The third and final day of competition takes place on Sunday at the Merano Lido. The fast final races will again be broadcast live on RaiPlay; the broadcast starts at 15:00 PM.