Valter Molea (l),
Riccardo Dei Rossi,
Lorenzo Carboncini and
Carlo Mornati (r) celebrate
their silver medal at the 2000
Olympic Games in Sydney,
Australia.
remained a top contender in the Italian team
including a stint as stroke of the eight. Younger
brother Niccolo began his international career
in 1999 and joined his first Olympic team in
2004, sitting behind Carlo in the eight.
up silver at the Worlds in Eton before finding
his resting spot in the four.
The vast experience is not just within the
boat. Coach Valter Molea is a veteran rower
of four Olympic Games, including Olympic
silver in the men’s four in Sydney. Molea then
retired from competition, moving directly
into the domain of top coach. Molea’s role
with the four has an additional dimension:
two of his athletes, Carlo Mornati and
Carboncini, were his teammates in the silver
medal Sydney Olympic crew.
With so many links, the crew admits they
spend a lot of time together. But when
possible, any moments away from rowing
mean returning to work and family
commitments.
Sartori is perhaps the most medalled
member of the crew. As a sculler for most
of his career, Sartori won Olympic gold in
the quad in 2000 and finished with bronze
in the double four years later. At the 2006
Rowing World Cup in Lucerne, Sartori took
up a position in the men’s eight and picked
Despite their proven experience in the boat,
the crew is cautious about their Beijing
chances. Currently they are working on
technical points they prefer not to share.
