Four medals, new records, young athletes tested on the big international stage and, above all, the image of a united team. That is the assessment offered by Christian Forcellini, president of the San Marino National Olympic Committee (CONS), at the close of the San Marino Team’s participation in the Mediterranean Games in Taranto 2026.
«What I bring home from Taranto is above all the image of a genuine team», Forcellini remarks, highlighting the unity, dedication, pride and sense of belonging shown by the athletes called upon to represent San Marino.
The most tangible result remains the four medals won in bocce and trap shooting, disciplines that once again confirmed the international competitiveness of San Marino’s sporting movement. In bocce, the protagonists were Jacopo Frisoni, Enrico Dall’Olmo, Giada Paoletti and Stella Paoletti, while in trap shooting Alessandra Perilli delivered another standout performance.
The CONS president, however, urges looking beyond the medal table. In Taranto, several young Sammarinese athletes had the chance to compete for the first time in an event of this calibre. Swimming produced personal bests and new national records, while Forcellini points to Nicole Conti’s showing in equestrian sport, riding Jappeloup, as one of the most pleasant surprises, also highlighting encouraging signs from women’s cycling with Valentina Venerucci and from tennis with Silvia Alletti.
There were also results that fell short of expectations, along with a few unlucky episodes. In athletics, Alessandra Gasparelli was unable to hit her hoped-for times, while Alessandro Gasperoni achieved a personal best. In trap shooting, Gian Marco Berti’s health issues affected both the individual event and the mixed team competition. Difficult experiences also marked shooting, men’s cycling and table tennis, the latter further penalised by the straight knockout format.
For Forcellini, though, the value of the expedition must also be measured by what happened away from the results themselves. Athletes in the stands cheering on their teammates, coaches and staff standing alongside the team, and a strong sense of belonging to the white-and-blue jersey are the aspects the president emphasises most in his assessment.
«We are a small state and will never have the numbers of the big nations», he observes. «But we have something just as powerful: a sense of belonging, the ability to come together as a team, and pride in the jersey».
The president went on to thank the athletes, the federations, the coaches and the entire organisational machine that accompanied the delegation, from secretary general Eros Bologna to chef de mission Anna Lisa Ciavatta, from deputy chefs de mission Maurizio Mazza and Lucia Castiglioni to the medical and physiotherapy staff, as well as the press office and San Marino RTV. Thanks were also extended to the Captains Regent, Alice Mina and Vladimiro Selva, and to Secretary of State Rossano Fabbri, for the support shown to the delegation.
Taranto therefore leaves behind four medals in the record books, but also a foundation on which to build the future. In Forcellini’s assessment, this is the main asset the San Marino Team brings home.
