Vany, Farfalla di Orzinuovi [The Butterfly from Orzinuovi], Cannibale [Cannibal], Lioness. (olympics.com, 26 Apr 2021; oasport.it, 06 Mar 2021; premiofairplay.com, 10 Jul 2018; Facebook profile, 20 Sep 2017)

Watching skating and diving competitions, listening to international pop music, ballet, drawing, dancing. (usagym.org, 27 Feb 2015; federginnastica.it, 01 Jan 2013; vanessaferrari.com, 02 Jan 2012)

Armed Forces Athlete

English, Italian

Brixia Brescia [ITA] / CS Esercito [ITA]:

Enrico Casella [Brixia, national]; Marco Campodonico [Brixia]; Monica Bergamelli [Brixia]

2006

In April 2019 she underwent surgery on both ankles. She returned to competitive action in early 2020. (SportsDeskOnline, 06 Jul 2021; federginnastica.it, 16 Apr 2019)

She suffered a torn tendon in her left Achilles while competing at the 2017 World Championships in Montreal, QC, Canada. She underwent surgery and returned to training in July 2018. She then sustained swelling in the same foot due to a bone oedema in September 2018 and had to stop training for a further two months. She returned to competition at the World Cup event in Melbourne, VIC, Australia in February 2019. (oasport.it, 22 Feb 2019; sportfair.it, 08 Dec 2018; La Gazzetta dello Sport, 25 Jul 2018; flogymnastics.com. 08 Oct 2017)

She underwent surgery on both of her Achilles tendons and her left ankle in September 2016. She required a six-month recovery period. She began to suffer shoulder problems during her recovery period but chose not to undergo surgery. She had previously withdrawn from the 2015 World Championships in Glasgow, Scotland with Achilles tendon problems and underwent a procedure for Achilles tendon reconstruction in December 2015 before returning to competitive action in mid 2016. (SportsDeskOnline, 07 Jul 2021; oasport.it, 25 Mar 2017; intlgymnast.com, 23 Sep 2016; blitzquotidiano.it, 03 Feb 2016)

She won a bronze medal in the individual all-around at the 2007 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany despite competing with a fractured left foot. She did not find out about the fracture until after the competition. (vanessaferrari.com, 02 Jan 2012)

She broke her right hand on the uneven bars in December 2005. The injury required surgery and she had four screws inserted into her hand. (FIG, 23 Oct 2006)

She took up gymnastics in 1997.

"I was watching television when I saw a gymnast on a balance beam for the first time. I thought, 'Wow, I would like to be like her'."

She became the first female artistic gymnast representing Italy to win a world championship gold medal when she claimed victory in the all-around event at the 2006 World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. (SportsDeskOnline, 06 Jul 2019; wogymnast.com, 15 Mar 2015)

To compete at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. (Facebook page, 26 Jun 2021)

Winning gold in the individual all-around at the 2006 World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. (SportsDeskOnline, 07 Jul 2021; ilgiornale.it, 28 Nov 2018)

Uzbekistani, German and Soviet gymnast Oksana Chusovitina. (olympics.com, 26 Apr 2021)

"If you are able to dream you can make anything come true." (Instagram profile, 30 Jun 2021)

In 2018 she received the Fair Play Menarini International Award for being a role model for the youth of Italy. (premiofairplay.com, 10 Jul 2018)

In 2007 she was honoured as a Knight of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. (quirinale.it, 08 Jan 2007)

She was awarded the Golden Collar of the Italian National Olympic Committee [CONI] after claiming gold in the individual all-around at the 2006 World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. (charitystars.com, 20 Nov 2014; International Gymnast, 20 Oct 2006)

MULTIPLE EVENTS
In 2020 she made the decision with her coach Enrico Casella to compete in all four apparatus in order to boost her qualification chances for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. "I took the decision during the lockdown [caused by the COVID-19 pandemic]. I wanted to take advantage of the additional time due to the postponement of the Games for one year. I worked out a lot when we were forced to stay at home and, once I got back to the gym, I felt very fit. So I asked my coach to train in the four apparatus and initially he thought I was crazy because he couldn't see me back on the uneven bars after four years without doing them. But, after a month, we both realised I could do it. I took the decision to have more opportunities to qualify for the Olympics and to have more cards to play once I'm in Tokyo." (olympics.com, 26 Apr 2021)

NICKNAME COLLECTOR
She says that she has collected several nicknames throughout her years of competing. "During my career I've been given a lot of nicknames. My first one was 'The Butterfly' perhaps because of the sense of lightness I was able to express. Then they used to call me 'The Cannibal' because I always wanted to win and I got upset if I couldn't win a medal. In the last few years I've been 'The Phoenix' because I've always been able to regroup and come back after many injuries. Now [in 2021] I'm called 'The Lioness' because I'm hungry for wins and they see me determined to reach my dream." (olympics.com, 26 Apr 2021)

OTHER ACTIVITIES
In 2010 she featured in the music video for the song 'Believe in Me' by Italian singer Valerio Scanu. In May 2015 she released her autobiography titled 'Effetto Farfalla' [Butterfly Effect]. (goodreads.com, 05 May 2015; bresciaoggi.it, 23 Apr 2010)