Yesterday evening, former fencer Elisa Di Francisca caused a stir with her comment “C’è o ci fa?” during a Rai broadcast, referring to swimmer Benedetta Pilato describing herself as “too happy” with her fourth-place finish in the 100m breaststroke at the 2024 Paris Olympics, just a centimeter away from bronze.
Di Francisca’s gaffe sparked controversy on social media, with the majority of comments defending the 19-year-old swimmer. When contacted by ANSA, both Federnuoto and RaiSport declined to comment on the matter. So far, Di Francisca has also refrained from commenting.
Agenzia ANSAParis 2024: Swimming, Pilato finishes fourth in the 100m breaststroke – Olympic News 2024 – Ansa.it
Irish swimmer McSharry snatches bronze from the Italian by a tenth of a second (ANSA)
“I feel compelled to say something about Benedetta Pilato’s interview last night. Each of us is different, each of us has different dreams and expectations! It’s nice to see (from the outside) people winning gold in ways that may seem simple, but it’s not at all that way!! Sometimes a fourth-place finish, even if by a small margin, is our biggest dream!”
Federica Pellegrini weighed in on the controversy surrounding Elisa Di Francisca’s comments towards Pilato on TV. “Why?! Because Benny, in her first Olympics, got eliminated in the heats and yesterday evening she had the seventh-best time – writes the former swimmer, who is currently in Paris with her husband Matteo Giunta and their daughter Matilde. Everyone likes medals, but… (and I only understood this in my last Olympics) sometimes the journey matters much more!! The heavy medals will come, Benny is only 19 years old! Let her dream what she wants”.
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