Paltrinieri issues challenge to Sun Yang

The hopes of Italian swimming all pass from the mighty shoulders of Gregorio Paltrinieri.

In Rio, the time has finally come for the batteries of the 1500-meter freestyle even though everyone hopes that the Carpi-born swimmer can be a protagonist especially in the final.

In an interview with ‘La Gazzetta dello Sport,’ the Italian swimmer explained how he intends to face the race: “A very hard race awaits me, I am calm about the great work done all year in search of my maximum. I am aware of my strength. And then there are so many expectations. Others put pressure on me and I put pressure on myself. It will be hard for everyone, I have done everything right to be here at the top,” his words.

The most dangerous opponent for the Carpenter seems to be China’s Sun Yang: “I like to think that I have avoided this competition for the last two years because I have been dominating the ranking for three seasons. The Chinese has shown that he is a great champion by confirming himself in two Olympics. But now I want to confront the best Sun to beat him: I don’t want to talk about his past, but about the race,” Paltrinieri added.