Why did you start playing petanque, and how old were you when you started?
Petanque was a sport that my Nonno (grandfather) picked up when he and his family, including my mum, moved from Italy to France for work following the war. After living there for a few years, they moved to Australia, where he became one of the founding members of Newcastle Petanque Club. Following his passing, Newcastle Petanque Club started the memorial "John D'Amore Cup", an open competition and a day of fun for family and friends. This is where I first played at around 10 years old, and I fell in love with the sport. A few years later, after pestering my parents to let me join the club and start playing, I joined along with my dad, and the rest is history.
What kept you playing?
The things that keep me coming back for more are our wonderful Petanque community and pushing myself to achieve new goals. When you fall in love with the sport, even if you stop playing for a period, you will always be brought back to it.
When did you first represent Australia?
I believe it would have been the 2015 Petanque Junior World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand. At the time of the competition, I had just turned 14, and I’ve wanted to continue representing our country ever since.
How does it feel to be representing the country again?
It is great to be back! Having this opportunity once again after returning to the sport following the completion of my university degree is more than I could have hoped for. Every time I have been selected for Australia, I have had the same feeling of pride and accomplishment. It never gets old.
What’s been the highlight of your petanque career so far?
There are many different things that I hold dear, achievements-wise in petanque, but winning the National Men's Singles Title this year would have to top it! Winning a national title has been on my bucket list since I started playing, so having ticked that off is definitely the highlight of my petanque career so far.
What motivates you to play better?
The biggest motivation for wanting to improve and grow is the idea of achieving things that Australia hasn’t managed yet on the international stage. Australia isn't exactly known as being the biggest petanque nation in the world, so making steps towards bigger international achievements is my next goal and keeps me pushing.
What's one of the most useful tips you would give a new player?
As a new player, it can sometimes be overwhelming to go straight into playing with a group of seasoned players who may have high expectations or want to over-correct you and how you play. The most important thing is the love of the game. As long as you enjoy playing, you will naturally seek to improve and find the best path forward to suit you and your goals.
What players do you look up to – international and Australian?
At a national level, my idol has always been Keiran Clarke. When I was only 10-12, watching him play at the John D'Amore Cup and seeing this teenager outplaying all the adults, winning titles and representing the country showed me that this is a sport where age is only a number.
He played aggressively and demonstrated the fun of shooting. This helped me understand the path forward for achieving these feats in the sport.
On an international level, it would be Diego Rizzi. At a time when the bigger petanque nations were dominating the sport, Diego seemed to come in and show that it was possible for players outside of those countries to go and succeed on the world stage. That, combined with being from the nation of my heritage, made toppling petanque giants seem much more achievable. | 
