Budapest (AFP)

The crazy project of the Italian Arianna Errigo to compete in the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 with foil, her basic weapon, and saber turns into confusion with her federation, without discouraging it.

At the World Championships in Budapest, Arianna Errigo was compelled to attend the stands of the compatriots of the saber Monday and Tuesday, while with the Italian florists, she won the money Monday in the early evening beaten by the Russia.

2013 and 2014 World Champion foil, the strong weapon of Italian women's fencing for decades, Errigo surprised in autumn 2016 by aligning at World Cup saber in Orleans, in the wake of JO- 2016 in Rio disappointing foil (elimination in the 8th finals).

The big gap in fencing between foil and saber is equivalent to 100 m and 800 m in athletics. A bet dared and never realized since the 1930s.

"There is no precedent, no one has ever done it For me, it's an added value, something unique, never seen," enthuses AFP the Italian 31 years old.

- Flowerettist and powerful swordsman -

Observed with curiosity at first, his project quickly impressed: first individual podium in December 2017, first participation in a team event in March 2019, the last before the start of the Olympic qualification.

"I joined the team when I did not expect it, because the federation was always against," said the native of Monza.

The Italian Federation asked him to choose between saber and foil before April 1, 2019, the start of the qualifying phase for Tokyo, while the saber and foil events in Japan do not telescoping yet.

"The position of the federation was clear from the beginning of the story.There is nothing new," says Giovanni Sirovich, Italian coach saber.

Far from having lost his level in foil, Errigo is mounted on almost all (5 out of 6) of the podiums of the Championships of Europe (gold in 2017, silver in 2018) and of the world (bronze in 2017, 2018 and 2019) since the beginning of his project, keeping himself in the top 4 worldwide.

"It could have been a source of pride, it could have been a world-wide example, you could look at it differently," she regrets.

- Call to the CIO -

In the fight against her federation, the Italian went so far as to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

"If tomorrow I say that I want to study and that I devote 50% of my time to my studies, no one can stop me," she says before the arguments of his federation that fears a loss if it is dedicated to both weapons. "Or if tomorrow I decide to have a child and stay an athlete, no one will be able to say to me + no, you can not spend half of your time with your child +", she adds.

The CAS has declared itself incompetent and Errigo is now relying on the Italian Olympic Committee (Cuneo). "Anyway I'm going to continue, I'll go all the way until someone tells me either + Yes, you're right +, or + No, you're wrong + It will take a month, two, four I do not know, one year, but I will not give up. "

Unlike some countries, like France, for example, which reserves at least one place on criteria solely for sports performance, in Italy, the four fencers by weapon selected for major championships are by the coach.

"She's not one of the best sabers, she's normal, so if she was N.8 in the world, I'll think about it," Sirovich said.

Not selected at the European and World Championships, Errigo was not able to score big points (which are double in Budapest), but is still 4th in the world ranking.

"If I'm right, it will be necessary for those who have prevented me to take responsibility, and if they give me wrong, then very well, it will have been a nice experience anyway," she concludes.

© 2019 AFP