Giovanni Di Cristo (born 1 August 1986 in Torre del Greco

Torre del Greco

-Main sights:*Roman archaeological remains, including the so-called "Villa Sora" , probably a property of the Flavians.*Monastery of the Zoccolanti, with a cloister housing 28 frescoed panels depicting the life of St...

) is an Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 judoka.

At just six years old he started to practice judo at his local gym, in Torre del Greco near Naples. His first important successes came in the Minors category in 2001 and Cadets, when he won the Italian title in the 66 kg in 2002. He became known in the juvenile nationals and showed he was a leading athlete on the Italian judo scene, gaining two bronze medals in the junior championships of 2004 and 2005. In the same year he won the Italian junior/senior cup in Ostia. The year 2007 is the year that saw his definitive consecration in the international judo scene, winning the bronze medal in the Italian Under-23 championships, and then going on to become the Italian national champion in Monza

Monza

Monza is a city and comune on the river Lambro, a tributary of the Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy some 15 km north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the Province of Monza and Brianza. It is best known for its Grand Prix motor racing circuit, the Autodromo Nazionale Monza.On June...

 and finally winning the gold medal in the European Under-23 Championships on 24 November 2007, in Salzburg

Salzburg

-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...

 (Aut), after crushing the competition of the other European competitors.The athlete, a new acquisition of the Guardia di Finanza

Guardia di Finanza

The Guardia di Finanza is a Italian law enforcement agency under the authority of the Minister of Economy and Finance. Like the Carabinieri, it is part of the Italian Armed Forces. The Guard is essentially responsible for dealing with financial crime and smuggling; it has also evolved into Italy's...

, reconfirmed his high-level status in the Italian Championships in Genova on 26 April 2008, winning 7 encounters and beating Marco Maddaloni

Marco Maddaloni

Marco Maddaloni is an Italian judoka.Marco Maddaloni, 177 cm tall, under-73 kg Italian judoka, was born in Napoli on 7 December 1984 as the third and youngest child of Giovanni Maddaloni and Caterina Iuliano...

in the final mach, who had been absent in 2007.

Achievements

Year	Tournament	Place	Light class
2004	Italian Judo Championships Juniores	3rd	Lightweight (73 kg)
2005	Italian Judo Championships Juniores	3rd	Lightweight (73 kg)
2005	Italy Judo Cup Ju/Se	1st	Lightweight (73 kg)
2007	Italian Judo Championships U23	3rd	Lightweight (73 kg)
2007	Italian Judo Championships	1st	Lightweight (73 kg)
2007	European Judo Championships U23	1st	Lightweight (73 kg)
2008	Italian Judo Championships	1st	Lightweight (73 kg)
2008	Super World Cup Rotterdam	2nd	Lightweight (73 kg)
2009	Game of Mediterraneo Pescara	1nd	Lightweight (73 kg)