Women's race
The individual trap competition at the XX Mediterranean Games Taranto 2026 concluded with two medals for Italy. The first medal went to Erica Sessa (Fiamme Oro) of Cava de' Tirreni (SA). Second in qualifying with a score of 117/125, the Campanian police officer approached the final with all her determination and, clay after clay, brilliantly advanced through the preliminary rounds until she battled for the gold with Turkey's Safiye Temizdemir. In the end, with a score of 28/30 to 27/30, the Italian earned second place, leaving her opponent in first place. Alessandra Perilli of San Marino finished third with a score of 22/25. “It was truly beautiful, an uncontainable emotion,” Erica explained at the end of the awards ceremony. “The facility is very demanding on a technical level, and in the final we had to face strong winds, but in the end I managed to stay focused until the end and bring home a good result. I thank the Italian Clay Pigeon Shooting Federation, the Fiamme Oro Sports Group, and CONI for allowing me to be here today.” Also in the final was Silvana Maria Stanco (Fiamme Gialle) from Sturno (AV), fifth in the qualifications with 115/125 and +3 in the play-off to assign the bib, and then fifth in the final with 11/15.
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Men's race
In the men's final, Italy entered the final as the favorite thanks to a near-perfect 124/125 by Emanuele Buccolieri (Fiamme Oro) of San Pancrazio Salentino (BR). The Italian athlete had a terrible start to the medal race, racking up two zeros in his first two throws, but regained his focus and managed to stay in contention for the podium. He ultimately secured the bronze medal with a score of 21/25. Ahead of him were Spain's Andres Gracia Garcia, gold with a score of 28/30 +3, and Greece's Ioannis Chatzisakiroglou, silver with a score of 28/30 +2.
The warmth of the public
"It's been a long time since I've been on a major podium, and returning here to Taranto, in my homeland of Puglia, is truly priceless," explained the police officer from Brindisi. "I felt the warmth of the crowd that supported me throughout the competition, and perhaps, precisely because of my strong desire not to disappoint them, I started the final poorly. I gritted my teeth because I didn't want to disappoint those who supported me on this adventure, and I hope I've adequately thanked them with this bronze medal." Mauro De Filippis (Fiamme Oro) from Taranto, seventeenth with 117/125, was eliminated from the final (source: FITAV).
