Tita-Banti’s “Momentum” and dominance at the Nacra 17 World Championships

The Nacra 17 and 49er World Championships are drawing to a close in Halifax, Canada. The news coming from overseas was in the air because of the way the week’s racing was going, but it is still sensational. Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti won the Nacra World Championship with one day to spare, with 13 wins out of 15 races. They discarded in the series a 20th place, while the other non-win is a second.

World Nacra 17 – Tita-Banti’s Moment

In the world of sports it is referred to by the most experienced analysts as “momentum,” or that psychological phase when everything seems to succeed, with a perfect connection between mental impulse and technical and physical gesture. Ruggero Tita and Caterina Banti are going through this “momentum,” and it has been going on for a while. For over a year, when they had dominated the Tokyo Olympics, Enoshima for sailing, winning gold. From that medal on, it is as if something mentally unlocked: only victories came at all the World Cup events they participated in, then a European title and now the World Cup.

Wanting to make a comparison in the sports world, the level of technical and mental omnipotence of the blue crew is comparable to that of a Michael Phelps in the best of times, when his every race in the pool seemed perfectly under control and almost easy. In fact, Tita-Banti are winning in some cases even by wide margins over their opponents. Making winning look easy, in disciplines as complex as the Olympic disciplines and nacra in particular, is something that probably only the outliers can do. We do not know what their Olympic careers will hold in the future for the two blues, but one thing is certain: “momentum” is on their side.

World Nacra 17 and 49er – The Italians

Among the Nacra 17 behind the blue pair is another tricolor crew: Ugolini-Giubilei, who by now have learned how to stably stay in the top 5. Bissaro-Frascari also did well, on the rise, although still searching for the continuity that would bring them back to the podium area more consistently.

In the 49er FX not an easy week for the promising Germani-Bertuzzi pair, who are struggling to get into the medal race. In the 49er, Crivelli-Visconti are in 13th provisional position.

Mauro Giuffrè