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Coach Cibe: April Italy Lacrosse Update

Editor’s Note: Please welcome Giacomo Bonizzoni, aka Coach Cibe, back to LaxAllStars.com! Coach Cibe knows as much about Italian Lacrosse as anyone, and is fully dedicated to seeing the popularity of lacrosse explode in Italy. He’ll be updating the LAS nation on Italy’s Lacrosse progress with monthly posts!

Make sure you also check out Coach Cibe’s website – CoachCibe.it! It’s a great read and full of information!

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The Italian Championship regular season is finally over.

Last Sunday the Italian regular season come to a conclusion and the semi-finalists have been decided.

From the Northern Division Bocconi Sport Team (Milan) and Red Hawks Merate will take on the finalists from the Southern Division, Roma Leones and Phoenix Perugia. The first legs of the semi-finals, Bocconi-Phoenix will take place Sunday april 21, the other Roma-Merate on the 28th.

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The eventual winners will challenge for the final and on may the 19th when the 4th Italian Champion will be crowned.
Recent winners have been Bocconi Sport Team (2011/2012), Red Hawks Merate (2010/2011) and Roma Leones (2009/2010).

Meanwhile, the Italian trophy for coaches (sponsored by www.coachcibe.it, the first independent lacrosse blog in Italy) continues.

The “COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD” is the first and only prize in Italy to be issued to the best coach. There is a special ranking based upon points assigned for games won in the regular season and bonus for placements in the championship and Italian cup.

The first (very successful) edition of the award was won by Bocconi Sport Team coach, Scott Offerman (USA) ahead of Giacomo “Cibe” Bonizzoni (Red Hawks Merate, Italy) and Steven Whitford (Phoenix Perugia, Italy).

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Bonizzoni and Whitford, could console themselves respectively with the Committee special award and the Career award.
In fact, beside the “Coach of the year award”, two more awards are attributed to coaches working in Italy:

The COMMITTEE SPECIAL AWARD, a prize decided and accounted for the coach who has most distinguished himself in the current sport season and the CAREER AWARD for the coach who contributed the most to the development of lacrosse in Italy with his career and activities throughout the years.

These two awards are assigned by a special committee composed by members of different Italian teams in order to guarantee the independence of the evaluations.

At present, in 2012/2013 sport season, two coaches from USA are leading the “coach of the year” ranking: Scott Offerman of Bocconi Sport Team (again) and Tony Silvaggio (assisted by two Italians, Antonelli and Lubrano) thanks to a perfect regular season.

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Going further, the organization of the Mediolanum Cup (the biggest invitational tournament ever organized in Italy), that will be held in Milan, continues.

The tournament will host 6 men’s teams and 6 women’s teams and will take place from 8th to 9th June 2013.

The tournament will be hosted at the Saini Sports Center in Milan. Men’s lacrosse team of Bocconi, Red Hawks Merate and American Revolution Lacrosse (from USA) are already subscribed, so there are only 3 places left. Women’s teams Milano Baggataway and American Revolution Lacrosse are already on the starting grid so, there are 4 places left.

If you are interested in this event, check the website www.mediolanumlacrossecup.com.

Giacomo “Coach Cibe” Bonizzoni
Photo credit Muriel Geroli

For more, check out Coach Cibe’s Italian Lacrosse Blog. Just click the image below!

Giacomo “Coach Cibe” Bonizzoni
Photo credit Muriel Geroli, Francesca Capriotti