At the Paris Games, the queens of women’s golf are ready to challenge each other at Le Golf National where the American Scottie Scheffler won the gold medal in the men’s individual competition, reaffirming his leadership.
In France, from 7 to 10 August, there will be 60 competitors competing, representing 33 countries. Italy will be represented on the field by Alessandra Fanali, number 1 Italian, making her Olympic debut. The 25-year-old, born in Alatri and raised in Fiuggi, in the province of Frosinone, is currently ranked 21st in the order of merit of the Ladies European Tour, the top women’s continental circuit.
She graduated in Sports Business from Arizona State University, in the USA, Fanali. And at the club that hosted the 2018 Ryder Cup, she aims to amaze.
Paris Olympics, statements
United States and South Korea with 3 proettes, Nelly Korda wants another gold medal – In the field, there are established and decorated champions, starting with the American Nelly Korda, leader of the Rolex World Ranking and already gold medalist at the Tokyo Games.
The United States, as well as South Korea, will field three players. With Korda, there is also Lilia Vu, number 2 in the world, and Rose Zhang. 124 years after Margaret Abbott’s success (in 1900, she won the tournament without ever knowing it was the Olympics, she was awarded a porcelain bowl, the medals were awarded from the Saint Louis 1904 edition onwards), the stars and stripes team dreams of another triumph in Paris.
In Japan, a double gold arrived: after that of Xander Schauffele, the work was completed, in fact, by Korda. South Korea (on the top step of the podium in 2016, in Rio de Janeiro, with Inbee Park) responds with Jin Young Ko, Amy Yang and Hyo Joo Kim.
Anticipation for New Zealander Lydia Ko, silver in Rio de Janeiro 2016 and bronze in Tokyo – There will be 23 nations with two proettes competing, eight with one. Among the most anticipated protagonists is also Lydia Ko.
The 27-year-old New Zealander (but she was born in Seoul), who in February 2015, at the age of 17 years, 9 months and 8 days, became the youngest golfer ever to reach the top of the ranking, aims to achieve yet another feat.
Silver medal in 2016, bronze in Tokyo, now she has the gold medal as her goal. The field – France instead relies on Celine Boutier and Perrine Delacour, China (bronze eight years ago with Shanshan Feng) on Ruoning Yin and Xiyu Lin, Australia on Minjee Lee and Hannah Green, Thailand on Atthaya Thitikul and Patty Tavatanakit.
While Japan (silver in Tokyo with Mone Inami), after the podium (bronze) in the men’s race with Hideki Matsuyama, hopes in Yuka Saso and Miyu Yamashita. The spotlight is also on the Swedish Maja Stark and Linn Grant (she too, like Fanali, graduated from Arizona State University), the latter capable of winning, twice, the Volvo Scandinavian Mixed (the first woman to win a tournament organized in combination by the LET and the then European Tour, now DP World Tour).
And again: on the British Charley Hull and Georgia Hall, on the Canadian Brooke Mackenzie Henderson, on the Mexicans Gaby Lopez and Maria Fassi, on the Irish Leona Maguire and Stephanie Madow, on the Spanish Carlota Ciganda and Azahara Muñoz.
The emotion of Alessandra Fanali – “I am certainly excited, the course is beautiful and very difficult. Here the winner is the one who plays well from tee to green, you have to be on point. My favorite player is definitely Lydia Ko, with her also Nelly Korda.
It will be nice to face them. I want to enjoy this experience to the fullest, I will visit the Olympic village and I will try to go and see some of the Italians’ competitions. I have already seen the calendar, on August 9th and 10th I will try not to miss the athletics finals”.
The departure of the Italian – Alessandra Fanali will start the tournament at 10:33 together with the Malaysian Ashley Lau and the Swedish Ursula Wikstrom. The tournament live on Discovery Plus. On Rai channels, live links and insights – The tournament will be broadcast live, for all four days of competition, from 9:00 to 18:00 on Discovery Plus.
Live links and insights in the columns “Qui Parigi” and “Notti Olimpiche”, on Rai 2 and Rai Sport. The competition formula – The tournament is played over a distance of 72 holes (18 per day), with stroke play formula, without cutting.