Antonio Ricciardi, a management figure for a year in the ranks of Gioiella Prisma, confirmed as the team’s accompanying manager.
He was born in Taranto in ’68, and since 1981 in middle school he approached volleyball thanks to a coach Vito Pinca, a Prisma collaborator for several years who trained his team at the school. In 1994 he moved to Verona, continuing to play volleyball as a setter at an amateur level, then in 1998, dragged by some friends, he became a Fipav referee.
He practiced the profession of referee, which he increasingly passionate about, until 2016 when he closed his career as a line judge in the Conegliano-Piacenza championship final after having played in the 2010 and 2014 World Cups and several men’s and women’s championship finals in the days of Modena Treviso Bergamo.
He also gets a lot of satisfaction as a referee in regional finals.
His statements: “After many years as an observer, in 2019 I left the world of refereeing which was wonderful for me. In all these years I have never stopped following volleyball and Prisma, I was present in one of the most beautiful pages in the history of Taranto, that is the victory in the Italian Cup in Bassano, against Alpitour Cuneo in the 2006-2007 season which it allowed us to go to the Assago Forum and compete against Fei and Cisolla’s Sisley. Over the years I have documented myself on the entire Super League, A2 and A3 series and foreign championships.”
In recent years the club has been interested in him due to his constant presence away from home in the Super League championship despite being 1000 km away from Taranto and for a year he has been alongside the team and staff during matches representing the club.
“The company knows that it can count very well on my availability and passion – continues Ricciardi – I will make available all my experience as a man in the field and my professional inclination to organize things well. I’m ready for a new year in the magical world of volleyball representing my city with Prisma.
This year I will be able to come to Taranto several times, also because breathing the air at home is not bad at all, I will always be there when away and at home and I will do everything I can to come. I am happy to represent the club in matches away from Taranto and to spend the second year in this team being part of this wonderful group where we feel good and work in synergy and sharing with Elisabetta, Tonio, Vito and the management; if the team needs me in terms of game rules and anything else they know that I’m sitting there and therefore they can also come and ask me for some advice as always.
