It has been six months since Silvia Stopazzini and Lorenzo Lupacchini manage to win for Italy the historical gold medal in Pas De Deux at the 2018 World Equestrian Games. Dribbling their many commitments, we had the pleasure to conduct a long interview that you can here read.
It has been a while since your victory, how do you feel? Satisfied? Tired? Still excited? I have to say I still get chills when I think about it.
SILVIA: As soon as the competition ended, and we came back to Italy, we took a month break to relax mind and body. We were quite tired because summer didn’t give us a break and just the thought of such an important competition is very tiring. It took a while to understand what we had done, we were full of adrenaline and emotions. First, the fact that we had made it and to know that all the hard work had paid off, gave us such a joy that words can hardly explain. Personally, I think I never felt the happiness (to say the least) that I experience in that moment. The gold medal repaid all the hard work and our faces at the end of the competition conveyed any positive emotion possible. To see the pictures now still makes an impression. Such a result fires you up, it motivates you and makes you think that truly nothing is impossible if you really want it.
LORENZO: Of course, we were tired the days after the competition, only when we got back home and we watched the videos we fully realised what we had done. It has been an amazing experience, one I would do again in a heartbeat from the beginning to the end.
Tell us how you celebrated.
The day we won we didn’t really celebrate that much, because the competition wasn’t finished yet. As we came back we organized a party at Lorenzo’s, where we invited all those who helped us in the way.
It was a challenge between the overwhelming Italian vitalism and the typical “cold Germanic perfection”. You were the only Latin pair among four Teutonic ones. What were your feelings?
SILVIA: We knew we had a freestyle outside the lines, but we also knew that it could have payed off and could have been liked, if perfectly carried out. On the other hand, if only a little thing would have gone wrong, it could had seemed rushed and imprecise. We had a captivating music, and we knew that was our strength, something that made us different from the others. And we were confident, every movement was studied in the detail, what really paid off was to be able to express ourselves the best, together with our horse, and to entertain the audience and the judges in a different way from the other pairs.
LORENZO: We had a really tough summer, our freestyle was a two-edge blade, because it was so complex in the structure and so fast that could only be beautiful and unequalled if perfectly done, otherwise it would have seemed awful. We knew that if the horse was fine, we could do the freestyle very good, but fear and stress are everyday material during a competition. Also, the Italian charm and ideas are always well accepted for the originality, but at the same time the German and Austrian perfection has no rival. We risked everything, and it worked out for the best.
After the first round, I think someone already assumed the pair Lindner-Wacha would have won the Games, and maybe they also bet on the Germans Kay-Derks to overtake your place, since they followed you only by one thousandth of a point. But when you entered the circle for the second round, you looked like someone who wanted to say, “now you are going to see what we can do”. From the very beginning you showed a determination that you do not see every day. How can you be so “angry” and at the same time do not transmit irritability to the horse?
LORENZO: It is true, we definitely came-on-strong, we knew what we could do, and the horse knew the routine very well. We thought that ending up on the podium would have been something great anyways and we had nothing to lose. We entered with a determination I never felt before, but without thinking about the final result, just about our performance. Laura (Carnabuci) said the horse was nervous as well, just like the rest of us, but we had a perfect understanding and only he poured out his “anxiety” after we ended.
SILVIA: The goal was to show what we were able to do. We didn’t think about the first place, although we knew we had our chances, nor we thought about Derks and Kay so closely behind us; we just wanted to show what we could do. The tension and concentration were high and also Rosen (the horse) felt the competition, but he did his job flawlessly regardless. As Lorenzo said, he poured out just after our dismounts (as if he wanted to say, now I can!), but we all handled the competition until the end.
The audience was entirely with you, you literally emotionally dragged it. Could you feel it from the circle or was the concentration such, that is was like there was nobody around?
SILVIA: I never think about the audience before entering the circle, as so was in America, too. Everything came so naturally that we were able to entertain everyone, giving back passion and fun. We did first of all a routine for the audience, but the concentration was so high that I could not perceive the reaction of the public. Only by watching the video many times I could understand what the people were feeling.
LORENZO: I felt the public the moment my feet touched the ground, before that I did not think of it. When we got out the applauses mixed with the awareness that we did a great routine. And it was amazing.
The trick is to work leisurely but tirelessly.
What about Rosenstolz? Does he feel the competition and the audience?
LORENZO: The day of the final things were a bit tense, a team of experts had worked with us (the vet Dallora, the physiotherapist Inghellieri, Vanessa Ferluga and Francesca Malaspina who rode our horse) and Laura, of course, who knows him very well, and everything went the right way.
SILVIA: Rosen is always reliable, as for any other horse it is important to know how to handle him and not to tire him much before the competition. The day of the final he felt our anxiety, but Laura was very good at handling him and we tried to be the lighter possible, not to bother him.
Tell me something about your relationship with Rosenstolz.
SILVIA: Our relationships is really unique because he’s special. He is always accommodating with us and ready to do his best everytime. We learned to trust each other and its funny now to think that in the beginning it was difficult for us to perform our routine on his back.
He’s the first to understand if we’re nervous and he let us know it with the quality of its canter. We are a team, we all work towards the same result and Rosenstolz comes before anything else. We always take care of him. Despite his size he’s lovely and only getting to know him you can understand how much affection he requires.
LORENZO: In the beginning it was not easy to vault on his back, and we were afraid to change horse, but when the relationship changed we came to trust him, and the winning quartet was born.
Your freestyle is unique especially for its dynamism and its captivating music. How did you choose the theme?
Choosing that theme was a combination of events: Lorenzo suggested it when we were in Leipzig (GER), but we did not talk about it anymore until one day, while we were looking for a suitable music for Silvia’s individual, we stumbled upon “Samba du Brasil”. We did over 40 different versions before getting to the music you heard in America and the work of our choreographer Elisa Rossi Mel, who loves and knows how to interpretate latin dances, was essential. It was difficult due to the speed of the music, we couldn’t take a breath, and it was impossible to use as many steps as in dancing because there always was a moving horse underneath us. It was something new and explosive and, probably, something never seen before in vaulting.
You danced mambo and salsa, but the colours on the suits were definitely Italian. How important is the choice of the costumes? How do you choose them?
SILVIA: We believe the costumes are as important and essential as the music, they can not be common. It’s important that what you wear helps to express what you perform because you’re as one with the music.
Our routine was inspired by the Russian team of rhythmic gymnastics and we worked with our choreographer (Elisa Rossi Mel) and tailor (Stilosa Creazioni and Cris Danza Pordenone) to create what we wanted. We looked for bright colours that would be typical of the South American Carnival and of the latin dance. Our costumes resemble one another and for the WEG we added the coloured fringes to make more impact.
LORENZO: As Silvia said, it was a huge work that required two tailors to produce what you saw in the competition, and the costumes where modified many times. We wanted them to express the energy of our music and movements but also they didn’t have to be bulky or bothersome. In the end, we were happy they were so appreciated.
The theme was the same with which you won the 2017 European Championships. Weren’t you worried that you might lose originality?
LORENZO: it was like outdoing ourselves, we knew we couldn’t find another theme like that, and at the same time we knew we had not given everything we had in 2017. So we decided to create a routine that was even more captivating and dynamic, where nothing was left to chance.
SILVIA: we didn’t have the element of surprise anymore, but we revisited the entire 2017 choreography changing some exercises and some movements. We knew that, being something new, the judges and the audience would have not been bored by it, even though the music was the same as last year.
You are truly “all-around” vaulters, you compete at the highest level also in the squad and individually. How can you balance all of it?
SILVIA: To be able to balance everything and compete at the highest level in three categories, you must be ready to face the hard work and spend most of your time training. We, for instance, had some extra training besides the ones with the team. We trained with our teammates and then we worked two more hours for the pas de deux and the individual.
The trick is to work leisurely but tirelessly.
LORENZO: Silvia is right, that’s the secret. Many told us we were out of our minds and something would have surely been lacking. I think at WEG we proved we are prepared in every event, this comes from effort and sacrifices but also from something that not all the vaulters have. Besides, to compete in different events has its upsides: if something goes wrong you know you have another competition to do better.
Did individual and team training helped you in your preparation for the pas de deux, or are they completely different kind of training?
LORENZO: To be able to work alone, in pairs or in three is a great advantage. We choose not to use any element we already performed in the team, so that both the routines could keep their originality. But I think the work and the physical training given by the compulsories was essential to what we did.
SILVIA: Individual and team helped me a lot to be ready to compete with Lorenzo; I believe each category is different, therefore my attitude towards them is different as well. The preparation was essential and helped me to get in shape both physically and mentally. Everything we did to prepare to compete individually and in team helped to be able to perform two continuous minutes in the pas de deux.
No one can deny you two are very close friends an I think that’s very important to succeed. Such a good friendship comes from being constantly close due to the trainings or were you already good friends?
SILVIA: To be friends and to have a good harmony in the first place is certainly very important, then of course that kind of bond strengthen by working so long and so close to each other. Let’s say that, there must be some sympathy, otherwise it’s difficult even to trust one another. In our case, we already trained together for the team and then we became a pair (sportively speaking) and we kept growing our friendship day after day.
LORENZO: We spent together almost the entire day every day, and this helped to strengthen our bond. Our friendship already existed but we came to a point were we almost couldn’t be without each other. We shared everything and when one of us was tired or lacked motivation the other cheered him up. Our relationship is unique and was born from the sport, but it also goes far beyond it. We share the same passions, ideas, hobbies, … We have never argued, we were always on the same page and we looked to the same goal.
Everything you do with your heart is valuable and, if what you do makes you happy, then you’re on the right way!
Silvia, you are from Modena, while you Lorenzo come from Pordenone. Your hometowns are not exactly nearby. How was the Stopazzini-Lupacchini pair born? (Or should we say “Lapuccini” as they would call you in Tryon?)
SILVIA: It was almost by chance, it was Laura who insisted we gave it a try. Lorenzo and I already worked together in the team, and in 2016 we decided to compete in the pas de deux as well. We were not expecting anything, it was just for fun in the beginning, but then we started to enjoy it. Our first competition was the cvi in Kaposvar (HUN), were we performed a routine inspired by The Little Prince. Lately we changed horse from Boston Baio (Lorenzo’s horse) to Rosen.
Villasanta was for us the best place to train.
LORENZO: The pair was born by chance, we started to try and saw that we could do something with it. Our cities are distant, but we moved to Milan a few years back, where we train together every day, with Laura and Rosen. We always only looked to the scored we gained and to ourselves, rather than the other competitors. There has been some competition that we won but didn’t get the score we wanted, so we weren’t happy, but there also were competition we didn’t win but still got the score we aimed to. The biggest step was to finally overcome 9.000 points.
Was there ever a moment you thought “we are not going to make it?” How did you overcome it? Who helped you?
SILVIA: There were many rough times, but we never thought we couldn’t do it. We always managed to cheer ourselves up. When one was unmotivated, the other was always there to support. Surely, Laura and our families were essential to help us when we needed it.
LORENZO: “Not making it” was my biggest fear, but I felt it more during the competition rather than in training. We sacrificed a whole year, maybe even two, so the thought of being there but not being able to show what we could do was terrifying. Luckily, everything went for the best.
You are now the “pair to beat”. Does this frighten or encourage you?
LORENZO: It is exciting, but it will be difficult to find something that could astonish even more. We will try, anyways.
SILVIA: It is encouraging. To know that we will be the pair to overcome, will give us a lot of energy.
What are your projects for the future?
Besides training and keeping being innovative, we want to train young vaulters and spread out knowledge through some clinics.
Last question: what advice would you give to a pair of young vaulters who wants to follow in your footsteps?
LORENZO: Not to hurry, because the results will come also when you least expect it. If you have a dream you must do whatever you can to reach it because everything is born from passion. It’s a tough sport, made of successes and defeats, where you can’t give up and have to sacrifice everything if you want to have some results at the highest level. Parents should let their children be free to follow their dreams without pressure, but most of all teaching them to accept whatever they get, whether it is good or bad.
SILVIA: My advice is to follow their dream. You can start by setting a small goal and, once you get to it, move on to a new one. The way to achieve a result is never easy and that’s why you have to be patient and don’t give up at the first difficulties.
Everything you do with your heart is valuable and, if what you do makes you happy, then you’re on the right way!
