In September 2023, the Italian gymnastics community experienced a real earthquake. Less than a year before the Paris Olympics, the head coach of the local gymnastics team, the creator of many successes, Julietta Canteluppi, left, and shortly afterwards took over the Israeli representation. The Italians had to act very quickly to avoid being completely left out in the cold. They decided to take a rather unexpected step.
Everything fell apart for the Italians. They had to find a plan B quickly.
The federation turned to Claudia Mancinelli. She was a gymnast, trained at one time by… Julia Canteluppi's mother, Bulgarian Kristina Ghiurova. However, after a few years, she abandoned sport in favor of acting, she starred in several Italian films. The gymnastics community, however, did not forget about her, and she took on a hellishly difficult task.
Especially since Sofia Raffaeli, the golden child of Italian gymnastics, has been placed under her wing. Literally golden, because despite being only 20 years old, she has won world championship titles in five different disciplines, the same at the European Championships. She achieved all this under the care of Julietta Canteluppi, so Mancinelia decided enter in really big shoes. Although according to unofficial reports, it was the conflict with Raffaeli that was supposed to make her former coach leave.
Mancinelli led her team to a medal and delighted the fans
Although there was little time and the circumstances were completely unexpected, Mancinelia managed to prepare her protégé enough to fight for the women's individual all-around medal in Paris. Raffaeli won bronze with a lead of just over a point over the German Margarita Kolosov. For the five-time world champion, such result may leave some dissatisfaction, especially since she won the qualifications. However, considering all the circumstances, she can be happy that she finally has a medal.
Mancinelli, in turn, has become an Internet star in the process. A recording has gone viral, showing the Italian coach pressuring the judges to take a second look at her protégé's performance and give it a higher score (which is what happened later).
The Italian's decisiveness, fearsome facial expressions, and beauty have captivated internet users. On portal X alone, the video has already over 18 million views. Thousands of warm words have been spoken about her. She has become the new star of the Paris Games.