AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) — Senior Eleonora Curtabbi, West Texas A&M University track and field mid-distance runner from Italy. She holds five school records including the outdoor 800-meters, outdoor 1500-meter, indoor 3000-meter, outdoor 3000-meter steeplechase, and indoor mile.

She ended her 2023 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field season named All-Region and championship qualifier in the 1500m and the Steeplechase. She looks to defend her 2022 championship title in the steeplechase to end her WTAMU track and field career.

Curtabbi was born and raised in Turnin, Italy where she started her running career, she explains how the track and field system is different from America. She explains that in Italy you run with a club, an unattached team, as opposed to America running for a school.

She credits her family for inspiring her to run track, her brother and sister were runners, so her parents encourage her to start running as well. She continued running after doing good without trying which made her find a liking to it. She even lists other sports that she dabbled in such as swimming and tennis.

Curtabbi said that she was not in the best moment of her life when she left Italy, her parents felt that she should try having a life in the United States. She agreed and gave herself six months to see if she would like to live in the U.S., Curtabbi detailed that her first two weeks were really tough and she felt that she should go back to Italy. She explains that her team influenced her to stay by providing a family-like atmosphere.

During the interview, Curtabbi goes more into detail about her journey from Italy to becoming a five-event record holder at WTAMU.