Franca Anna Bianconi Manni (born 3 March 1962) is an Italian

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

coach and former competitor. She competed at the

1980 Winter Olympics The 1980 Winter Olympics, officially the XIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Lake Placid 1980, were an international multi-sport event held from February 13 to 24, 1980, in Lake Placid, New York, United States. Lake Placid was elected ...

, but did not medal.

Personal life

Bianconi was born on 3 March 1962 in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, Italy. She is the mother of Italian ice dancer Victoria Manni.

Career

Bianconi began skating at age six in Milan. During her career, she was coached mainly by Franca Invernizzi in Milan and also spent time in Colorado training under

Carlo Fassi Carlo Fassi (20 December 1929 – 20 March 1997) was an Italian figure skater and international coach whose students included several World and Olympic champions. As a single skater, he was the 1953 World bronze medalist, a two-time European c ...

and in Lake Placid under Tommy Litz. Bianconi debuted at the European and World Championships in 1977. She was selected to represent Italy at the

Lake Placid, New York Lake Placid is a village in the Adirondack Mountains in Essex County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,303. The village of Lake Placid is near the center of the town of North Elba, southwest of Plattsburgh. ...

and finished 19th. She retired from competition in 1981 and became a coach. Bianconi's earliest students were Paola Tosi, the 1985 Italian champion, and Antonio Moffa, the 1987 Italian silver medalist. She has also coached

Valentina Marchei Valentina Marchei (born 23 May 1986) is an Italian retired pair and single figure skater. As a singles skater, she is a five-time Italian national champion (2004, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014). Her highest ISU Championship placements were 4th at the ...

Roberta Rodeghiero Roberta Rodeghiero (born 7 April 1990) is an Italian figure skater. She is the 2015 Trophee Eric Bompard bronze medalist, the 2014 CS Ondrej Nepela Trophy champion, the 2015 Lombardia Trophy champion, the 2012 Crystal Skate of Romania champion, ...

Stefania Berton Stefania Berton (born 19 July 1990) is an Italian former competitive pair skater. With partner Ondřej Hotárek, she is the 2013 European bronze medalist, the 2013 Skate Canada International champion, and a three-time Italian national champion. ...

Ondřej Hotárek Ondřej Hotárek (born 25 January 1984) is a Czech-Italian pair skater and coach who began competing for Italy in 2006. He competed with Valentina Marchei until the end of their partnership in 2018. With former partner Stefania Berton, he is the ...

(the 2013 European bronze medalists), and

Matteo Rizzo Matteo Rizzo (born 5 September 1998) is an Italian figure skater. He is a two-time European Championship medalist (silver in 2023, bronze in 2019), a three-time Grand Prix bronze medalist, the 2019 Winter Universiade champion, a two-time Itali ...

(from the age of six years). She is based at S.S.D. S.r.l. Icelab in

Bergamo Bergamo (; lmo, Bèrghem ; from the proto- Germanic elements *''berg +*heim'', the "mountain home") is a city in the alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from Switzerland, the alpine lakes Como ...

Competitive highlights

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bianconi, Franca 1962 births Italian female single skaters Italian figure skating coaches Living people Figure skaters at the 1980 Winter Olympics Olympic figure skaters of Italy Figure skaters from Milan Female sports coaches