Italy's Olympic taekwondo champion Vito Dell'Aquila returned to his roots in Mesagne, Brindisi, to share his Roma Grand Prix gold medal with the young athletes who train at the gym where his journey began. The 25-year-old, who delivered Italy's first gold at Tokyo 2020, celebrated his June 2026 triumph at the New Marzial club, the same facility where he first stepped onto the mats at age eight.
Why This Matters
• Olympic pedigree: Dell'Aquila is Italy's reigning taekwondo champion, having won gold in the -58 kg category at Tokyo 2020—a historic first for Italian taekwondo at the Games.
• Current form: His Roma Grand Prix victory marks his strongest performance on home soil and signals he remains a top contender in the global circuit.
• 2028 target: While focused on the Muju Grand Prix in South Korea (4-7 September 2026), Dell'Aquila has confirmed Los Angeles 2028 is firmly in his sights.
Homecoming in Brindisi
Dell'Aquila's visit to the New Marzial gym in Mesagne was more than a victory lap. Welcomed by coaches Roberto, Steeven, Luigi, and Jonny Baglivo—the team that first nurtured his talent—the Olympic champion spent time with young athletes who now follow the same path he once took in Puglia's taekwondo heartland.
"Coming back to Mesagne, where it all started and where I grew up, is always a huge emotion," Dell'Aquila told the Italian news agency ANSA. "I'm truly happy to share this success from Rome with them. I'm still incredibly satisfied with that result."
The Roma 2026 World Taekwondo Grand Prix, held at the Foro Italico from 5 to 7 June, saw Dell'Aquila defeat South Korea's Eunsu Seo in a dramatic final. The win was his first Grand Prix gold on Italian soil, filling a gap in a résumé that already includes Olympic glory, a world title from Guadalajara 2022, and European gold from Belgrado 2024.
Message to the Next Generation
Dell'Aquila's advice to the Mesagne youth reflected the mindset that carried him from a provincial gym to the Olympic podium. "I tell young athletes to commit if they want to reach a certain result—which doesn't necessarily have to be a gold medal," he said. "They must always believe in what they do. The result may not always depend on them, but belief is fundamental."
His career trajectory underscores that message. Born in Mesagne on 3 November 2000, Dell'Aquila began training under maestro Roberto Baglivo and rapidly ascended through junior ranks. By 2017, he had secured world bronze at Muju in the -54 kg class. Two years later, he claimed European gold in Bari and won the Grand Prix in Moscow, both in the -58 kg category.
The Tokyo 2020 gold (contested in 2021) was the apex, delivering Italy's opening medal of the Games. World Taekwondo named him "Best of 2021" in recognition. He followed up with world championship gold in Guadalajara 2022 and European gold in Belgrado 2024, cementing his status as one of the sport's elite.
The Road Ahead
Dell'Aquila's immediate focus is the Muju Grand Prix in September 2026, where he will face renewed competition from South Korean athletes on their home turf. The event represents a key opportunity to build momentum toward the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
"I'll resume training in a few days because there's the Grand Prix in Muju," Dell'Aquila confirmed. "I think about the 2028 Olympics, but right now I'm focused on the appointment in Korea. I don't want to look beyond that. I'm aiming for gold there too."
The Muju Grand Prix (4-7 September 2026) will be the second stop on the World Taekwondo Grand Prix Series 2026, followed by Paris (8-11 October) and the Grand Finale in Astana, Kazakhstan (28-29 November). Muju holds symbolic weight: it is the home of the Taekwondo Park and a spiritual centre for the sport.
What This Means for Italian Taekwondo
Dell'Aquila's continued success anchors a resurgent Italian taekwondo movement. At Paris 2024, Italy qualified three athletes—Dell'Aquila, Simone Alessio (-80 kg), and Ilenia Matonti (-49 kg). Alessio, a two-time world champion (2019, 2023), is widely regarded as a medal favourite, while Matonti's qualification ended a 16-year Olympic drought for Italian women in the sport.
The Roma Grand Prix 2026 marked the reset of the Olympic ranking, opening a fresh qualification cycle for Los Angeles. Dell'Aquila's home victory injects momentum into a movement that has grown exponentially since his Tokyo breakthrough.
Honours and Recognition
During the Mesagne event, the New Marzial coaching staff presented honorary black belts to Mesagne mayor Francesco Rogoli and Puglia Regional Council president Tony Matarrelli, recognizing their support for local sports infrastructure. The gesture underscores the symbiotic relationship between grassroots clubs and regional institutions in sustaining athletic development.
Dell'Aquila, who competes for the Carabinieri sports group, has become a symbol of how provincial investment in youth sport can yield Olympic-level returns. His presence at the New Marzial gym—where children still train in the same hall where he first learned poomsae forms—offers tangible proof that elite performance begins with local commitment.
For an athlete who has already delivered Italy's first Olympic taekwondo gold, the prospect of defending his title—or adding another—at Los Angeles 2028 remains the ultimate goal. In the meantime, young athletes in Mesagne and across Puglia have a living example of what disciplined belief can achieve. Dell'Aquila's return to the New Marzial gym, gold medal in hand, is both a celebration and a challenge: the next generation of Italian taekwondo champions may already be training on those same mats.
