Two talents compared: Larissa Iapichino and Mattia Furlani

It's almost time! On 7 June, the curtain will be lifted on the European Athletics Championships Rome 2024. We are ready to cheer the two young long jump talents chosen as Ambassadors by UniCredit, Official Sponsor of the event: Larissa Iapichino, 21 (third in the world rankings, Italian and world U20 indoor record holder with a result of of 6.97 metres, U20 and U23 gold and European indoor silver) and Mattia Furlani, 19 (world indoor runner-up and Italian champion).

Before seeing them give their all on the track, we invited them to an entertaining double interview highlighting the shared goals and differences between the two talents. Both follow their parents’ footsteps (Larissa’s mother is Fiona May, the multiple gold medallist in long jump, her father is coach Gianni Iapichino, former Italian  pole vaulting record holder and May’s coach, while Mattia’s mother is sprinter Khaty Seck). Both  are driven by a strong passion and determination and  esteem and admire each other very much. While Larissa emphasises the importance of being appreciated above all as a person and is very strict in judging herself, Mattia is more inclined to playing things down with a hearty laugh.

Iapichino in fact, admits  there hasn’t yet been a first time when she thought she was really good, while Furlani patted himself on the back when he hit a score of 7.47 metres, approaching the Italian category record. Mattia  confesses  he wants to win a lot of medals and that the worst criticism he has so far received is about his hair being too long.

Whereas with Larissa, it’s hard to  question her way of being and her goal: “always being the best version of myself”, showing her wealth of humanity and generosity, as proven when it comes to sending a message to her national teammate on the eve of Rome 2024: “I know you’re going to rock it and you don’t need any help, any reassurance”.  And Mattia, swaying in  confidence, responds with  “Lari, good luck, see you at the track!”.

Sport has the power to highlight  positive values, also central in life, that UniCredit believes in: willpower, commitment, respect for the rules.

We look forward to seeing you, as Official Partner, at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome from 7 to 12 June.

Don’t miss the double interview in our dedicated video.

You can also watch the individual interviews with Mattia Furlani and Larissa Iapichino from our previous articles.