1st AiCS National Lake Trout Fishing Championship (Team Event)

The national lake trout championship arrives in Novaledo

The 1st AiCS National Lake Trout Fishing Championship (Team Event) marked the debut of a new competition in the Italian sport fishing landscape. The event took place on July 4 and 5, 2026, at Lago Stefy, a sport fishing lake located in the Municipality of Novaledo, in Valsugana, in the heart of the Autonomous Province of Trento (Trentino-Alto Adige). Organized by the AiCS Provincial Committee of Vicenza with the patronage of the AiCS National Directorate – Sports Department, the event saw the participation of the provincial committees of Trento and Vicenza.

The team (Box) format

The competition adopted the team format, consisting of three athletes per squad, following the "Box" system. The registered teams, up to a maximum of thirty, faced each other in two competition rounds held on Saturday and Sunday mornings, each divided into nine turns. The final score was determined by the sum of the results from both days, with the ranking based solely on the trout caught and the penalties accumulated. Team check-in was scheduled for 7:00 AM on Saturday morning, with sector draws conducted in the preceding days.

The protagonists and the ranking

The inaugural event attracted 72 athletes grouped into 24 teams from four regions: Veneto, Trentino, Emilia-Romagna, and Tuscany. The national title went to the APS Amici di Spin team, composed of Matteo Bozzola, Andrea Corn, and Alessio Dall'Ara, who managed to win both days with a total of 148.5 trout caught and 29.5 penalties. Also on the podium were Liberi del Brenta (Paolo Carraro, Daniele Cacco, Daniele Rizzo) in second place and Team Gino Sport (Valentina Burato, Giovanni Vigo, Simone Cervato) in third.

A lake nestled in Valsugana

Lago Stefy is a small lake dedicated to sport fishing, set in the green surroundings of Valsugana, not far from Levico Terme. Its waters are home to rainbow trout and char, making it a popular destination for lake trout fishing enthusiasts. The choice of this location for the first national championship highlighted a fascinating mountain territory, offering athletes an exceptional natural backdrop among the peaks of Trentino.

A starting point

The technical organization was led by sole judge Elio Rigotto, national manager Claudio Canova, and technical commissioners Giuseppe Carollo and Galliano Torricini. According to the organizers, "the success of this first edition represents an important starting point for the development of sport fishing within AiCS." As this was an inaugural edition, the future of the event as a recurring appointment will be defined in the coming seasons.