Mom Patrizia, an artistic gymnastics coach, managed to pass on her passion for the sport to her daughter, thus enabling her to win 12 UISP Italian titles in the vault and uneven bars. At 16, however, her physical structure forced her to change sport and, after seeing the Russian athlete Isimbayeva perform on TV, she decided to try pole vaulting. In just a few years, she joined the Italian national team and bagged a bronze medal at the junior European Championships and a gold medal at the Under-23 Mediterranean Games. She graduated from high school with honours.