Your typical day resembles that of any high-level athlete: training, planning, recovery, goals. What\u2019s the aspect of your routine that most surprises people who don\u2019t know the Paralympic world up close?<\/p>\n
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Agnese Romelli: \u201cWhat surprises people most is how little has changed compared to when I was able-bodied. After about a year I started riding again using one arm and the \u2018bike arm\u2019 \u2013 the prosthesis made specifically for cycling. It\u2019s not complicated, it\u2019s just a bit painful, especially on rough terrain. You have to avoid potholes and learn to endure. That\u2019s all\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Andrea Casadei: \u201cWhat seems to surprise people most, from what I\u2019ve been told, is the volume of training we Paralympic athletes handle, along with the consistency, precision and determination we put into it \u2013 which is exactly what you need if you want to win something important. Our training volume is comparable to that of an able-bodied athlete. The exercises are often the same, both on the bike and in the gym; we simply had to adapt by finding different ways to perform them. I do six bike sessions a week, split between road and time trial, plus two gym sessions\u201d.<\/p>\n
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Many still think that a Paralympic athlete \u2018adapts\u2019 to sport. In reality, it\u2019s sport that adapts to the athlete, just as it does for everyone. What\u2019s the idea you\u2019d most like to change in those who watch you from the outside?<\/p>\n
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AR: \u201cI wouldn\u2019t change anything, honestly. On the road, other able-bodied athletes I ride with notice something is \u2018missing\u2019. It creates curiosity and leads to inclusion. Those who don\u2019t know our world don\u2019t realise you can ride even with physical limitations. Through our example, we can encourage people to learn about and practise sport with a disability\u201d.<\/p>\n
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AC: \u201cI\u2019d love for people\u2019s perception of disability to change. Too often we\u2019re seen as something different, someone to pity. I want disability to become normal in everyone\u2019s eyes. To make that happen, we need more media visibility for the entire Paralympic movement. I can say for sure that anyone who has watched a Paralympic competition \u2013 and seen what differently-abled athletes can do \u2013 starts to see disability with \u2018different eyes\u2019. At the same time, it encourages those with disabilities who need strength to get involved. That\u2019s what happened to me: watching the Rio 2016 Paralympics convinced me to take the leap\u201d.<\/p>\n
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When you train, you do exactly what professional athletes do: structured plans, specific sessions, testing, recovery. What\u2019s your favourite part of the process, and why?<\/p>\n
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AR: \u201cThe most satisfying part is when I come home exhausted: helmet and glasses on the table, I sit for a moment and feel like I\u2019ve given everything. That feeling of having pushed through fatigue and commitments\u2026 that\u2019s when you know the training worked\u201d.<\/p>\n
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AC: \u201cMy favourite phase is winter training, when we work a lot on strength in the gym and transform it into cycling-specific exercises. And of course, to get results you need a good coach \u2013 someone you trust, someone you exchange feedback with. When everything goes well, it\u2019s incredibly rewarding to see your performance and fitness improve\u201d.<\/p>\n
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What is the biggest challenge you\u2019ve faced in your journey, and what has it taught you about your way of being an athlete?<\/p>\n
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AR: \u201cThe biggest challenge was learning to live with the pain of the amputation. Contrary to what people think, it\u2019s always there and tests you every day. For me, the challenge was to get used to it and endure it without relying on medication. It taught me that you get nowhere without suffering\u201d.<\/p>\n
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AC: \u201cThe biggest challenge for me was becoming a full-fledged athlete at 360 degrees. Unlike those who start sport as kids and grow into it, I started cycling at thirty, after my accident. More than once in my first competitive year I felt I had jumped into something too big for me. I had joined one of the strongest teams in the world, surrounded by multi-medal champions. I felt out of place. Insecurity is part of us and grows with what\u2019s around us\u2026 but I was already dancing, so I had to dance. And it was the best decision I could have made\u201d.<\/p>\n
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On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, what message would you like to share with fans of the Giro d\u2019Italia and Giro d\u2019Italia Women, and with anyone dreaming of starting a sporting journey but not feeling \u2018good enough\u2019?<\/p>\n
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AR: \u201cIf you don\u2019t put yourself out there, you stay still. Starting is always the right move\u201d.<\/p>\n
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AC: \u201cMy message is that not all dramatic events are only negative. With time, willpower and commitment, you can often find something good even in the worst moments. And for anyone who dreams of starting sport but doesn\u2019t feel \u2018suitable\u2019, I can only say: find the courage to take the first step. The rest will follow. Always give your best, never give up, and you\u2019ll see that everyone, in their own way, can achieve something remarkable\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your typical day resembles that of any high-level athlete: training, planning, recovery, goals. What\u2019s the aspect of your…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":324826,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-324825","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-cycling","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324825","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=324825"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324825\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/324826"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=324825"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=324825"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=324825"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}