One of the new names and promising of women race walking in Italy, is  that of Mariavittoria Becchetti, of which we were very critical on the occasion of her first important international race into the European Cup Dudince 2013. Since then, the young walker has gone a long way, and Marcia dal Mondo wanted to hear her in this short interview.

As chance would have it today while we published this interview, Mariavittoria Becchetti won the Italian title of 20 km women U23, arriving second overall, and establishing her personal best with a time of 1:34:29.

1) When did you start to walk, how did you come, have you had any difficulties in learning walking was it quite natural?

I started walking in November 2007, after a year when I attended the athletic field of Farnesina. Like all young guys, our instructors made us try all disciplines and initially when they proposed walking, we weren’t very excited. One day, however, I decided to commit myself and I don’t found it very difficult to apply the rules of techniques. From then on I decided to devote myself exclusively to race walk.

2) Who was your first coach, how you train a week? With your current coach you've ever had the diversity of views on the type of training and setting technique?

One of my instructors at the camp was Stefania Ferdinandi, who, previous walker, she approached myself to race walk. 

After few years, however, for various problems, I passed under the guidance of my father Franco, who hang out around athletic for 40 years.

The relationship with him is serene because we can distinguish the roles of father-daughter and coach-athlete.

Actually i train 6 days per week, while the beginning only 3 or 4.

3) How long have you lived the sad and dark moments of disqualifications? Have you suffered particularly or for you DQ is part of the rules of the game and should not be dramatized?

A disqualification is never pleased, but you have to take into account this possibility at every race.

4) Your race, up today, more beautiful, not for the result, but for the way in which you think you have interpreted it, that which immediately do again in the same way?

Surely the race of Lugano, on March 15. Beyond the result, I played the game exactly the way in which I had prepared.

5) The defeat that left you the nasty taste in your mouth ?

Usually not rest with a nasty taste in the mouth for a long, after a race gone male.

Nevertheless, the race where I could give much more was that of the Italian championships in Rieti 2013, before the European Junior.

6) Your international race most beautiful and the most painful?

In addition to that of Lugano, the other international race more beautiful was in Podebrady 2013, my first experience with the national team of Italy.

In this occasion the greatest excitement was for the first time to get on an international podium, in addition to feel part of a close group of friends.

On the contrary I have not encountered the same friendships in the next race in European Cup in Dudince, that was my most painful international race.

7) What do you think about the "Pit Lane Rule" recently enacted in order to allow young athletes to give a second opportunity of finishing the race ?

I believe that the disqualification is always an event "traumatic" for a young boy, maybe approaching for the first few times to disciplina.

Therefore I think well done this new system.

8) How do you see the movement of race walk in Italy, and particularly for women?

We should protect in race walk, as in other disciplines, the age groups most at risk of withdrawal: they are the future image of Italian athletics.

In race walking, besides to high-level athletes, the junior categories and U23 have a very small nursery.

Clubs and the Federation should support in a more concrete way the most promising athletes who devote more effort to the discipline.