Manuel Piazza (born 13 October 1999) is an Italian pair skater. With his skating partner, Anna Valesi, he is the 2024 Italian national brozne medalist and has won seven senior international medals, including silver at the 2022 Bavarian Open.
| Manuel Piazza | |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 October 1999 Bolzano, Italy |
| Hometown | Ortisei, Italy |
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) |
| Figure skating career | |
| Country |  Italy |
| Partner | Anna Valesi |
| Coach | Ondřej Hotárek Luca Demattè Rosanna Murante |
| Skating club | IceLab Bergamo |
| Began skating | 2006 |
Career edit
Early years edit
Piazza began learning to skate in 2006.[1] He placed sixth in junior men's singles at the Italian Championships in December 2016 and again in December 2017.
In 2018, he teamed up with Alyssa Montan to compete in junior pairs. Making their international debut, Montan/Piazza won silver at the Inge Solar Memorial – Alpen Trophy in November 2018. The following month, they took silver in the junior event at the Italian Championships.
In their second and final season together, Montan/Piazza won the Italian national junior title and placed 16th at the 2020 World Junior Championships in Tallinn, Estonia. The two were coached by Ondřej Hotárek, Luca Demattè, and Franca Bianconi in Bergamo, Italy.[2]
2021–22 season edit
In the 2021–22 season, Piazza began competing in the senior ranks with Anna Valesi. Making their international debut, Valesi/Piazza took bronze at the Tayside Trophy in November 2021. The following month, they placed fourth at the Italian Championships.[3]
In January 2022, Valesi/Piazza were awarded silver medals at two events – the Icelab International Cup and Bavarian Open.[3]
2022–23 season edit
In September 2022, Valesi/Piazza won bronze at the Lombardia Trophy and placed seventh at the 2022 CS Nebelhorn Trophy.[3] In October, they were invited to their first Grand Prix event, the 2022 Skate America, where they finished fifth.[4] They were seventh at the 2022 Grand Prix of Espoo.[3]
2023–24 season edit
Beginning the international season at the 2023 CS Nebelhorn Trophy, Valesi/Piazza finished ninth. On the Grand Prix, they came sixth at their lone assignment, the 2023 Grand Prix de France.[5] They were subsequently invited to the 2023 Cup of China, following the withdrawal of Americans Chan/Howe.[6][7] They were sixth at that event as well.[8]
Programs edit
With Valesi edit
| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2023–24 [9] |
|
|
| 2022–23 [1] |
|
|
With Montan edit
| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 [10] |
|
Competitive highlights edit
GP: Grand Prix; CS: Challenger Series
Pair skating with Valesi edit
| International[3] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Event | 21–22 | 22–23 | 23–24 |
| GP Finland | 7th | ||
| GP Cup of China | 6th | ||
| GP France | 6th | ||
| GP Skate America | 5th | ||
| CS Nebelhorn Trophy | 7th | 9th | |
| CS Warsaw Cup | 5th | ||
| Bavarian Open | 2nd | WD | |
| Challenge Cup | 8th | ||
| Diamond Spin | 3rd | ||
| Icelab International Cup | 2nd | ||
| John Nicks Challenge | 2nd | ||
| Lombardia Trophy | 3rd | ||
| Tayside Trophy | 3rd | 3rd | |
| National[3] | |||
| Italian Championships | 4th | WD | 3rd |
| TBD = Assigned; WD = Withdrew | |||
Pair skating with Montan edit
| International: Junior[2] | ||
|---|---|---|
| Event | 2018–19 | 2019–20 |
| Junior Worlds | 16th | |
| Bavarian Open | 8th | 3rd |
| Egna Trophy | 1st | |
| Inge Solar Memorial | 2nd | |
| National[2] | ||
| Italian Championships | 2nd J | 1st J |
| J = Junior level | ||
Single skating edit
| International: Junior[11] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event | 13–14 | 14–15 | 15–16 | 16–17 | 17–18 |
| Cup of Tyrol | 3rd | 8th | |||
| Gardena/Egna | 7th | 6th | |||
| Merano Cup | WD | ||||
| International: Advanced novice[11] | |||||
| Gardena Trophy | 7th | ||||
| National[11] | |||||
| Italian Champ. | 7th N | 6th N | 6th J | 6th J | |
| Levels: N = Novice; J = Junior WD = Withdrew | |||||
References edit
- ^ a b "Anna VALESI / Manuel PIAZZA: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 3 October 2022.
- ^ a b c "Competition Results: Alyssa MONTAN / Manuel PIAZZA". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 14 August 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f "Competition Results: Anna VALESI / Manuel PIAZZA". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 11 October 2022.
- ^ Slater, Paula (October 23, 2022). "Knierim and Frazier reclaim Skate America pairs' title". Golden Skate.
- ^ "Figura, bel secondo posto per Beccari-Guarise al Nebelhorn Trophy!" [Look, nice second place for Beccari-Guarise at the Nebelhorn Trophy!]. Federazione Italiana Sport del Ghiaccio. September 22, 2023. Retrieved September 30, 2023.
- ^ AnythingGOEs [@AnythingGOE] (October 19, 2023). "🇺🇸 Emily Chan / Spencer Akira Howe have withdrawn from Cup of China" (Tweet). Archived from the original on October 21, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ AnythingGOEs [@AnythingGOE] (October 23, 2023). "🇮🇹 Anna Valesi / Manuel Piazza have been assigned to Cup of China" (Tweet). Archived from the original on October 29, 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ Slater, Paula (November 11, 2023). "Stellato-Dudek and Deschamps score another victory in China". Golden Skate. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
- ^ "Anna VALESI / Manuel PIAZZA: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 14 November 2023.
- ^ "Alyssa MONTAN / Manuel PIAZZA: 2019/2020". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 2 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Manuel PIAZZA". rinkresults.com.