Pellegrini bemoans 'sexist insults' (5)

(ANSA) - Rome, October 10 - Swim queen Federica Pellegrini said Tuesday she had "rarely received sexist insults, and never from people so close, for a woman it's really brutal" after a row over coaches with Italian long-distance swimmer Gregorio Paltrinieri. Pellegrini's contention that an award should have gone to her coach and not Paltrinieri's unleashed a storm of mostly hostile comment on social media.
    Stefano Morini was named coach of the year recently, beating Pellegrini's trainer Matteo Giunta.
    The Italian swimming federation, Federnuoto, said later Tuesday it was opening a probe into the case to assess "possible responsibilities by members in an affair that has damaged the sport's image".
    Federnuoto chief Paolo Barelli called for an end to "the escalation of vulgarities".
    Pellegrini, 29, is Italy's most successful woman swimmer.
    She is the only swimmer − male or female − to have won seven medals in a row in the same event (200 meters freestyle) at the World Championships.
    She is also the first female Olympic champion in the history of Italian swimming, at Beijing in 2008, and the only Italian swimmer to have set world records in more than one event.
    Paltrinieri, 23, is the Olympic and world long course and short course champion and three-times European long course champion in the 1500 m freestyle event at the 2012, 2014 and 2016 European Championships, and two-times European long course champion in the 800 m freestyle event. Paltrinieri is the current 1500 m freestyle (short course) world record holder. He also holds the long course European records in the 800 m and 1500 m freestyle events