Ben Marmsoler and Nicole Bazzanella took part in the Italian Championships on the Seiser Alm.

Overview of various Italian championships

At the end of the 2024/25 season, the Italian Biathlon Championships were held in Martell, and the Cross-Country Skiing Championships in Toblach. In these two top South Tyrolean destinations, local talents were able to demonstrate their outstanding skills. There were also several other successes to celebrate.

01 April 2025

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The Grogg Biathlon Center in Martell hosted the Italian Biathlon Championships this weekend. The mixed relays took place on Saturday. In the U17 age group, South Tyrol took second and third place behind the "Alpi Occidentali." Silver went to Katia Pallua, Teresa Seeber, Elias Niederstätter, and Rafal Santer, while bronze went to Elsa Canins, Verena Pallua, Jan Steinkasserer, and Andreas Braunhofer. The U19 (Giovani) category also saw medals, taking bronze. Diletta Broll, Eva Hutter, Aaron Niederstätter, and Alex Fontana competed. South Tyrolean ski hunters also made it onto the podium at the U22 awards ceremony. Birgit Schölzhorn, Denise Planker, Maximilian Leitgeb, and Christoph Pircher took second place behind the Army Sports Group's mixed relay team.

The title fights continued on Sunday with the exciting mass start races. Jan Steinkasserer (Antholz) was crowned the new U17 Italian champion, while among the young women of the same age, Anna Anvidalfarei (Gröden) achieved the best result from a South Tyrolean perspective, finishing eighth. In the U19 category, Thea Wanker (Gröden/Finance Guard Sports Group) took third. Local hero Simone Motta (Martell) celebrated the title in the young men's category, while Aaron Niederstätter (Ridnaun/Carabinier Sports Group) took silver. In the U22 category, Denise Planker (Gröden/Army Sports Group) narrowly missed the medal ranks, finishing fourth, while Christoph Pircher (Terlan/Police Sports Group) took third. In the general age group, Hannah Auchentaller (Carabinier) from Antholz took the win, while David Zingerle (Army Sports Group) came second behind World Cup high-flyer Tommaso Giacomel.

The overall winners of the Italian Cup (Coppa Italia Fiocchi), which comprised 16 competitions over the course of the 2024/25 winter season, were also honored in Martell. In the U17 category, there was a South Tyrolean triple victory by Julian Huber, Jonas Tscholl, and Jan Steinkasserer, while Anna Anvidalfarei finished fifth among the biathletes. In the U19 category, Hannes Bacher, Simone Motta, and Aaron Niederstätter finished second to fourth, while Tanja Wanker took the overall victory and her twin sister Thea finished second. In the U22 category, there were two other local overall winners: Maximilian Leitgeb and Denise Planker. South Tyrol also won the overall ranking.

Italian Championships also in Toblach

Numerous medals at the Italian Championships in the Nordic Arena
The Italian Cross-Country Skiing Championships took place in Toblach last weekend. The event kicked off on Friday with freestyle sprints, which counted toward the Italian Cup (Coppa Italia Rode). Marit Folie (Army Sports Group) and Romina Bachmann (Carabinieri) finished second and third in the U20 category, respectively, while Luca Pietroboni (ASC Sesvenna) took third place in the U18 category.

On Saturday, the Nordic Arena hosted the relay races. Romina Bachmann, Marta Bellotti, and Marit Folie took home the win in the U20 age group. The championships concluded on Sunday with the mass start classic technique races. In the U20 category, Marit Folie finished second in the 20 km, followed by Romina Bachmann. Luca Pietroboni won the bronze medal in the under-18 category, while Marta Bellotti took second and Emma Schwitzer third in the young women's race (16,5 km).

Here, too, the overall winners of the Italian Cup were honored at the end of the event. Among the young women's cross-country skiers, Folie prevailed over Bachmann in the U20 category. In the U18 category, Bellotti took second place, and Schwitzer finished fourth. In the U18 category, Pietroboni finished second. The South Tyrol Provincial Committee took third place in the final standings.

Precious metal is also available on the Seiser Alm

The Italian Freestyle Snowboard Championships were held at the renowned snow park on the Seiser Alm. Jan Fulterer (Alpe di Siusi) took fifth place in the slopestyle. Nicole Bazzanella (Alpe di Siusi) performed even better in the Big Air, taking third place in the general age group and second in the U18 (Aspiranti) category. Ben Marmsoler (Alpe di Siusi) also took home the bronze medal in the U16 (Allievi) category.

The snowboarders are at the start in Austria

South Tyrol's young snowboarders achieved several podium finishes at an FIS Junior Regional Cup in Haus im Ennstal, Austria. Manuel Haller (Police Sports Group) took third place in a parallel slalom on Saturday. He beat Kevin Crazzolara (Gröden) in the small final, while Mike Santuari (Welschnofen) finished fifth. In the young women's competition, Anna Mammone (Welschnofen/5th) and Sofia Federspieler (Villnöß/7th) were eliminated in the quarterfinals. On Sunday, Santuari snatched the win, Haller finished fourth, and Mammone took sixth place in the women's competition.

At the end of the event, the overall winners of this new competition, which includes a total of eight races in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, were also crowned. Santuari took the overall victory in the junior category, while Crazzolara took third place. Tobias Mutschlechner also finished third in the U15 category. Lia Holzknecht took second place overall in the women's U13 category.

Addendum to Alpine Skiing

Several FIS races, which also counted toward the Gran Premio Italia ranking, took place in Pejo in Trentino mid-week. In the first of two men's Super-Gs, Tommy Lochmann (Vigiljoch) prevailed in the GPI ranking and took second place in the U21 age group, while Alex Silbernagl (Alpe di Siusi) won the U18 category ahead of Noah Gamper (Cermes). In the second Super-G, Lochmann achieved the fastest time of the day and thus also won the other rankings, while Silbernagl and Gamper once again took first and second place in the U18 category.