Francesca Tarantello: a biology student at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games
The 22- years-old student of the University of Padua Francesca Tarantello will participate in the Paralympics Games 2024 in Paris thanks to the results of the last two years that have placed her among the top 10 athletes in the world who are selected to compete in the Olympic Games. Visually impaired since birth, Francesca has never considered her limited vision as a real disability or obstacle: she has been swimming since the age of 6, at 12 she already started competing and at 20 she discovered Triathlon (swimming/cycling/running), which became her real passion and also a job. Currently enrolled in a degree course in Molecular Biology, Francesca combines her studies with an intense athletic training programme on a daily basis, as she herself said:
‘My day is marked by training (two to three sessions per day), in between which there is studying. Last year I got up very early in the morning to do the first workout, then went to university for classes and attended any workshops in the afternoon, and then did the second and third workouts in the evening. Always very tight schedules requiring great concentration and commitment. In the evening I would then collapse. This year, as an Olympic year, the university has made it easier for me to manage my studies with the various training sessions during the day. This is also thanks to the scholarship provided by the university to support a dual student-athlete career. I am very satisfied with the path I am on: on a sporting level, in my studies and also on a personal level. Having to manage the university course, sport, planning my days, exams has made me grow, mature and given me a lot of responsibility. With the skills and knowledge acquired in my studies I would like, in the future, to be able to contribute to research, the diagnosis of genetic diseases or the discovery of new drugs, new treatments. Sarebbe fantastico poter dare un contributo alla scienza, aiutare chi è affetto da qualche patologia rara o malattia genetica e chissà, magari anche diagnosticare la mia stessa patologia di cui ancora non è stato identificato il gene responsabile.»
On Wednesday 17 July, Francesca met the Rector of the University of Padua, Daniela Mapelli, who was able to congratulate the young student athlete in person on her extraordinary sporting achievements:
‘Francesca is a student-athlete with great fortitude who is reconciling her university career with her moments of study in the best possible way,’ said the rector. Hers is also a wonderful example of how the University of Padua has for years been committed to promoting wellness and sport at every level of the university world, for example by offering scholarships to support dual careers: we currently have 116 students who have benefited from them. I wish Francesca that in the coming years, compatibly with her commitments as an athlete which keep her very busy, she will be able to enjoy university life and the city of Padua even more, and that in the meantime she will be able to realise one of her dreams, which is to make a contribution to research on rare diseases through her academic career‘.