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Everything is set and ready to welcome all the 341 athletes coming from 55 different Nations all over the world. Italy, the hosting Nation, has the largest group with 68 swimmers who will dive into this 4 days of competition looking for at least one of the 28 medals up for grabs during the evening sessions. 

Numerous international stars and legends of Paralympic swimming will light up the Bella Italia swimming pool in Lignano with their performances. In such an important season that is aiming for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, this leg of the World Series fits perfectly into the calendar of both great champions who will be able to test their form five months before the big event and young talents who can have the possibility to challenge themselves. The Organizing Committee hopes the vibes that the athletes and their staff will feel during their stay in Lignano can remind them of a little Paralympic village as the Bella Italia & EFA Village is a fully accessible venue within a sporting village along the beach with pools, soccer fields, tennis courts, and other sports facilities and guesthouses to live the experience 100%, even all the community moments before and after the competitions. 

Fifteen world record holders are expected to race in their main events, tasting the competition they will find in Paris. Among these names is Simone Barlaam, 19 x World Champion and Tokyo 2020’s Paralympic Champion in the 50 freestyle S9.  

These are Simone’s words before diving in this week World Series: “Surely there is a great emotional bond with the pool of Lignano and with this event because it reminds me of many good moments both in terms of results and friendships that have been consolidated. This year the Italian leg of the World Series will be full of many important names and athletes from all over the world. It will be an approaching appointment for the European Championships in Funchal and then for the Paralympics in Paris. In Lignano, I hope to compete at a high level and have fun outside the pool with so many friends”.

For the Azzurri, another bright star will be Carlotta Gilli (5 medals at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, 22 medals at the World Champs): “The home event is always very exciting. The thing I like the most is that, in addition to the stars of international swimming, it is combined with the Italian Championships, so there are all the younger kids, who can already breathe the atmosphere of an international competition like the one in Lignano. Seeing the world Italian Championships and the World Series intertwine is something beautiful, then everything is very convenient because the Village is attached to the pool, so there are no transport problems. Every year there are new opponents, but it is nice to compete together and see where they are at”.

Between the pool and the poolside, there will also be the inexhaustible Francesco Bettella, General Manager of the Lignano Sabbiadoro World Series and a member of the FINP Italian National Team (4 podiums between Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games):  “We are certainly very happy to have reached the sixth edition of the World Series in Lignano Sabbiadoro. Every year we have tried to improve and to raise the bar. We are proud to have achieved a new attendance record and we know that it will be a special edition because we are just a few months away from the Paralympics and for many teams, with large numbers of athletes, it will be a selection in view of the Games. There will be almost 70 Italian athletes competing, who are also aiming to arrive in top condition for the European Championships in the coming months. It is always a bit difficult for me to follow all the organisational part and do the competitions, but I am trying to balance the two as best I can. It will be a great event and we will try to do our best so that this event is a positive experience for all the athletes and the different delegations in general”.