logo
Pope Leo's impressive gym routine revealed by ex-personal trainer

Pope Leo's impressive gym routine revealed by ex-personal trainer

Independent22-05-2025
From the hallowed halls of the Vatican to the weight racks of a Roman gym, the newly elected Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost, has followed an unconventional path to the papacy.
For two years, Prevost, appointed in 2023 to oversee bishop nominations, frequented the Omega gym in Rome's upscale Prati district, alongside priests, nuns, and local residents.
The gym's owner, Francesco Tamburlani, recalled the moment he learned of Prevost's elevation. "When the name of the pope was announced, my phone rings and my son tells me, 'Dad, it's Robert! Robert, our member!'" Tamburlani recounted, noting the eruption of cheers from his staff. "This moved us, filled us with joy."
Prevost, 69, maintained a rigorous workout regimen, surprising his personal trainer, Valerio Masella, with his stamina. Their sessions, two or three times a week, lasted up to an hour and involved a workout plan typically designed for men aged 50-55.
So, how much does the pope bench? Masella can't speak to his papal power, since Prevost was focused on posture and cardiovascular capacity. He ran on his favorite treadmill that faces a mural featuring famous local landmarks, among them St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
'We would start off slow and then go pretty strong, I must say. Especially a lot of resistance on the exercise bike, a very strong climb,' Masella said.
Throughout their two-year training, Masella never knew Prevost was a cardinal, nor did he hear him utter a discouraging word. 'I don't think I've ever heard him make a comment about anything that wasn't positive. He was always positive about everything -- the weather, the city, the people, also for me, he said he liked the gym.'
A Vatican spokesperson didn't reply when asked for comment.
A sporting pope isn't new. Pope John Paul II, who was elected at the age of 58, was an avid skier and mountain trekker.
Chicago-born Prevost's game is tennis. On May 15, he met top-ranked player Jannik Sinner, who gave him a racket and offered to play during an off day at the Italian Open. Leo had said earlier in the week that he would be up for a charity match when it was suggested by a journalist.
After Prevost took over the Vatican's Dicastery for Bishops in 2023, he said in an interview with the Augustinian Order that his new job had left him little free time to practice his game. While the Mediterranean climate makes tennis possible year-round, the papacy will likely leave him even fewer chances to step onto a court.
Tamburlani, the Omega owner, says the Holy Father is welcome back any time he wants to squeeze in a workout. After all, his membership's still active.
'This would make us so happy,' he said. 'We would organize our gym to guarantee his safety and his privacy. We would just need a sign.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Australia vs British and Irish Lions referee: Who is second Test official Andrea Piardi?
Australia vs British and Irish Lions referee: Who is second Test official Andrea Piardi?

The Independent

time4 hours ago

  • The Independent

Australia vs British and Irish Lions referee: Who is second Test official Andrea Piardi?

Andrea Piardi takes charge of the second Test between Australia rugby and the British and Irish Lions. Piardi became the first Italian to take charge of a fixture in the men's Six Nations when he oversaw his first game last year. The 32-year-old has been a familiar face on the touchlines as an assistant over the last few years, travelling to the World Cup in France in the autumn of 2023 as the sole Italian representative in the officiating group. Born in Brescia, Piardi made his debut in what is now the United Rugby Championship in 2019, and he stepped up to international level that March, looking after Germany vs Spain in Cologne. His quick rise continued with an appointment to the URC final between the Stormers and Munster in 2023, with Piardi now hoping to build further success with the whistle as he becomes a regular in the world's top competitions. A mechanical engineering graduate from his hometown university, Piardi became a professional referee relatively recently but is highly regarded. He will be assisted by Ben O'Keeffe and Nika Amashukeli, the referees for the first and third Tests respectively. Match officials for second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground Referee: Andrea Piardi (Ita) Television Match Official: Eric Gauzins (Fra)

Italy withdraw from World University Games after gymnast seriously injured in fall
Italy withdraw from World University Games after gymnast seriously injured in fall

Reuters

time4 hours ago

  • Reuters

Italy withdraw from World University Games after gymnast seriously injured in fall

July 25 (Reuters) - Italy have withdrawn from the rest of the World University Games in Essen, Germany, after gymnast Lorenzo Bonicelli suffered a fall during his routine, sustaining a serious neck injury that required surgery, news agency ANSA reported on Friday. Bonicelli remains in intensive care but is stable and his life is not in danger, the Italian Gymnastics Federation (FGI) said, after the 23-year-old was rushed hospital where he underwent surgery following the incident. "From the University Hospital in Essen... we (learned) that today, the athlete, who remained conscious after the accident until the moment of surgery, was awakened from a medically-induced coma and is showing positive signs," the FGI said in a statement on Friday. Italy have withdrawn from the competition due to the emotional impact the incident had on the rest of the team, ANSA reported.

England must tap into the old lump-it-long, bulldog spirit to slay Spain in the Euro 2025 final, writes IAN HERBERT
England must tap into the old lump-it-long, bulldog spirit to slay Spain in the Euro 2025 final, writes IAN HERBERT

Daily Mail​

time5 hours ago

  • Daily Mail​

England must tap into the old lump-it-long, bulldog spirit to slay Spain in the Euro 2025 final, writes IAN HERBERT

There was a brief moment of confusion on the eve of the Lionesses' Euros semi-final against Italy when Sarina Wiegman was asked if she had 'fallen in love' with England and, not entirely understanding why she was being asked, did not come straight out with the most fulsome answer. 'Yes…' she replied, rather falteringly and without elaboration. Wiegman later said it had been a comprehension problem. It can be this way with her. English language and colloquialisms — 'console your team' and 'let the cat out of the bag' — have flummoxed her over the past few years. The question was extremely relevant given the way 'Englishness', in an old-fashioned 1980s football sense, has been the team's watchword here, and referenced by a2 number of the players of how England survived a bumpy road to reach Sunday's final against Spain. Chloe Kelly arrived to speak on Tuesday as the semi-final's player of the match and declared: 'I'm proud to be English.' The theme resurfaced when Keira Walsh was asked about the never-say-die resilience which rescued the team against Sweden in the last eight, then Italy, 30 seconds from time. 'It's a part of being English,' she said. 'What we speak about as a team is that English resilience and we pride ourselves on it.' The FA have gone to great lengths to create a different definition of Englishness in the past 10 years. There is the fabled 'England DNA', dreamt up at St George's Park, about progressive, technical football through all the age groups and, under Gareth Southgate, a more broad-minded, less narrow view of nationhood. But the Lionesses in these past three weeks have reverted to what men's football would call the bulldog spirit: a fighting, never-say-die mentality. 'Do or die' has been the only way, as seen in the dramatic last-eight and semi-final comebacks Some of this fighting spirit has been a necessary product of England's failure to get anywhere near the technical levels they found in the 2022 tournament. Finalists they might be, but they have not played well in progressing the ball up the pitch. 'Do or die' has been the only way. To watch back the two goals England scored in their comeback win against Spain in the 2022 quarter-final is to be reminded of how diminished in technical brio and confidence they seem to have become. But there has also been a profitable reversion to the old England. When her team was being torn apart by France in the opening game, Wiegman told Walsh, the midfield technician, to play longer balls. Against the Dutch, who England rightly expected would press them, Walsh went vertical again in what was the team's best display here. 'It helped us playing longer,' Walsh said. 'It plays to our forwards' strengths. If the way to win is playing one straight pass that's what we're going to do.' Against the weaker Welsh, England played through the midfield. The numbers bear out this reversion to what was once an admired and feared brand of English football. The percentage of England passes sent long has increased from 10.6 per cent at the 2023 World Cup, where they were beaten by Spain in the final, to 13.2 here, Stats Perform data shows. Their number of successful passes which are long is 201 (9.1 per cent) compared with 5.8 per cent at the World Cup and 7.5 per cent at the 2022 Euros. Heading into a final against the best passing team in the world, the principles of scrapping and lumping it seem a good way to win and find sweet recompense for the one-sided 2023 World Cup final. Become engaged in a midfield battle with Patri Guijarro, Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas and it could be a long night. Beautiful though their tiki-taka aesthetic was in the semi-final against Germany, Spain struggled to create scoring chances. A long ball attack on Spain down England's left would put Lauren Hemp up against right back Ona Batlle. Hemp has had the better of that battle during Manchester derbies, when Batlle played for United and Hemp, now at Barcelona, was with City. The key is getting Hemp in behind Batlle to find crosses which can target the 34-year-old Spanish captain Irene Paredes, whose lack of pace can be exploited. England's equaliser against Spain three years ago demonstrated the value of going aerial in this way. A gorgeous left-footed cross by Hemp saw Alessia Russo beat Parades in the air, leaving her flat on the ground as Ella Toone pounced on the dropping ball to score. England won 2-1. There were similarities between that Toone goal and the equaliser against Italy: a cross from even deeper on the right and the ball dropping to Michelle Agyemang to score. England get lots of bodies in the box and have some of the best headers of the ball in this tournament. The potential for this plan to deliver the early goal screams out for 19-year-old Agyemang, the prodigy, to start, though she almost certainly will not. Wiegman bristled when asked on Tuesday if Agyemang, who appeared from the bench in both knock-out games here and changed the course of them, was forcing her to consider her as a starter. 'She's not forcing me,' Wiegman said. 'She's grateful for minutes and been ready for it.' A vital contributor to a more direct approach will be Lucy Bronze — a huge presence in the past month. She got forward down the right for the back-post header against the Swedes. Her decisive penalty in that game confirmed her as the fearless epitome of this resilient England. 'I don't think we've ever negated tactics or anything else that comes with the game with the term 'proper England', Bronze said. 'But we don't want to ever forget we are England — proper England — and if push comes to shove, we can win in any means possible.' Georgia Stanway, another of the pillars of the team, feels the same. 'We've spoken about wanting to be proper England,' she said. 'We want to go back to what we're good at, a traditional style of football in terms of tough tackles, getting back down to our roots.' It has been a rollercoaster ride for this team. Perhaps the most improbable journey to a final. But the chaos of these past weeks has armed them with a psychological edge: a knowledge they are never beaten.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store