Through 2022 and 2023 Scutto became one of the most prolific medallists in the sport and shot to number one on the World Ranking List. 4 grand slam golds, another world medal and 2 Masters medals indicated an impressive trajectory towards 2024 but after another Abu Dhabi gold, in 2023, things went quiet and between October 2023 and the 2024 Abu Dhabi World Championships, Scutto struggled to medal, she was struggling to find form at all. She lost out at the 2023 Europeans and chose not to compete at the 2024 edition, no placing in Tashkent or Antalya. Had the bubble burst?
“This has not been a good period for me. It has been really hard to come back up to the level needed to compete with these athletes.”
From some injury management to balancing the need to complete sustained training blocks and work for improvement rather than just medals, perhaps this downward slope was necessary. The 2024 World Championship would be a big test.
“I felt really well on competition day here at the worlds. I’m sorry for the final, actually I’m a bit sad as I think I could have won but this is for next year now. The real target this time was to bring my level back up, to know we did the right things and to prepare for the Olympic Games."
"I grew up a lot and this is now my 3rd medal from 3 world championships, 3 in a row and I’m happy with that.” Not many 22 year olds have 3 senior world medals. “Year after year I grow up more and today I gained a lot of experience, more experience to help me in the next events.
Maybe I was a bit emotinal in the final block but it’s good to feel this now, here, and be able to work on it for the next time. I am patient enough and will keep working. This was a good experience and we have a lot of information from it and at a good time."
"My coach, Antonio Ciano was near to me in the really dark times, throughout this difficult 6 months and he is training me every day both physically and mentally. All aspects are important for me. He knows me well and gets it right so that I can bring a good performance when I really have to.”
Assunta Scutto now has one focus, carrying the knowledge that she is back, her judo is ready and her team knows what needs to be done, and this Olympic Games, her first, could be an exciting moment in the young Italian’s career.
