Oltremare Racquet Camp

Buon San Valentino! (Happy Valentine’s Day)

We thought it would be fun to teach you some Italian and share a few fun facts about how Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Italy.

1) Valentine’s Day is known as La Festa Degli Innamorati (the festival of lovers)

2) Flowers and chocolates are exchanged, including Baci Perugina chocolates, which include wrappers of romantic poetry

3) In Verona, where Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet was set, the city will celebrate throughout Valentine’s Day weekend with music of street artists, tasting of food and wine, and handmade crafts (according to visitverona.it)

Here are some ways to wish your special someone a Happy Valentine’s Day:

Buon San Valentino, Amore Mio (Happy Valentine’s Day, My Love)

Con te ogni giorno è San Valentino (Every day with you is St. Valentine’s Day)

Amo te oggi e sempre. Buon San Valentino (I love you today and forever. Happy Valentine’s Day)

How can you top watching world-class squash players compete in the Tournament of Champions at Grand Central Station?

Give your kids the experience of a lifetime with Oltremare Racquet Camp, our summer camp in Italy.

For two glorious weeks, campers aged 9 to 15 years old will train in three racquet sports — tennis, squash, and padel — along with studying Italian for an hour a day, sampling Italian culture, and taking supervised side trips to Florence, San Marino, and Europe’s biggest water park.

The camp director is Simone Rocca (pictured here at ), a squash legend in his native Italy.

Simone dominated the sport for nearly a decade, winning eight national championships and representing his country at 17 world and European championships. He holds the top Italian coaching certification and served as head coach of the Italian Junior National Team from 2007 to 2011.

Read more about Simone and the summer camp at orcitaly.com

Walter Giacometti Tiger Tennis Academy Queen’s Club Cattolica Federazione Italiana Giuoco Squash Renzo Andorno Stefano Messina Mirsky Digital Raphi Salem

Meet Renzo.

He is a photographer, video maker, and squash coach.

Renzo Andorno lives near Lake Como and travels frequently to Nepal, where he has photographed the Nepali people and culture and coached the Nepalese Men’s and Women’s National Team as well as children in squash.

He is president of the NGO SOS Nepal, which — since 2000 — has helped build a school in the Everest Valley, a hospital in Maleku, and an active shelter for poor children in Kathmandu. Soon, Renzo will open the first Squash Academy in Nepal.

A Level II squash coach, Renzo trained under squash legend Simone Rocca (now a friend of 20+ years). He will join Simone in coaching the kids at Oltremare Racquet Camp in July, 2025.

It’s not every day that your squash coach is also a professional photographer and video maker.

That’s what we call the icing on the cake! Or panettone as it were.

Learn more about his background:

https://www.orcitaly.com/our-team/



Tiger Tennis Academy Walter Giacometti Jennifer Mirsky Raphi Salem

Meet Daniela, Camp Manager.

Partners on and off the squash courts, Daniela and her husband, Simone Rocca co-owned and co-managed Mondo Squash Riccione for seven years, serving children after school and adults at night.

Consider Daniela the camp mom. Just as she’s done with prior summer camps for kids in Riccione, Italy, she will manage Oltremare Racquet Camp, supervising the kids and making sure they are doing well. “Basically what a mom should do!” she says.

Learn more at https://www.orcitaly.com/our-team/

Walter Giacometti Tiger Tennis Academy Renzo Andorno Photographer Stefano Messina Jennifer Mirsky Raphi Salem Cliff Rubin

Meet Simone, Camp Director.

A squash legend in his native Italy, Simone Rocca dominated the sport for nearly a decade, winning eight national championships and representing his country at 17 world and European championships.

He holds the top Italian coaching certification and served as head coach of the Italian Junior National Team from 2007 to 2011. Before that, he was head coach at squash clubs in Turin, Florence, and Prague.

Known for his innovative teaching techniques for beginners, Simone is particularly effective at imparting his champion mindset to his more advanced students.

He has a passion for squash and especially loves working with juniors.

Learn more about his background and previous summer camps:

https://www.orcitaly.com/our-team

Tiger Tennis Academy Walter Giacometti Renzo Andorno Photographer Stefano Messina Raphi Salem

It’s time for your first Italian lesson!

The way we say Happy New Year is “Buon Anno.”

As for how we celebrate?

Throwing old things out the window is more fiction than fact these days.

We can eat lentils for good luck…adults can drink prosecco on New Year’s Eve…and families can play “tombola,” which is similar to bingo.

New Year’s eve is known as la festa di San Silvestro (the feast of San Silvester).

“Il capodanno” literally translates to the head of the year.

Buon anno to you and yours!



Tiger Tennis Academy Simone Rocca Renzo Andorno Photographer Raphi Salem

We will train at two of Italy’s top sports facilities. Tennis and padel will take place at Queen’s Club Cattolica and squash at Federazione Italiana Giuoco Squash (National Squash Center).

One coach will be assigned to every four players.



Walter Giacometti Tiger Tennis Academy Simone Rocca
Mirsky Digital Raphi Salem

Twelve Days of Christmas — Oltremare Racquet Camp Style!

On the twelfth day of Christmas,

my parents gave to me:

twelve days in Italy,

eleven points per squash game,

ten tennis techniques,

nine flavors of gelato,

eight epic water park rides,

seven padel strokes,

six squash courts,

five pro tennis sets,

four guided side trips,

three towers of San Marino,

two state-of-the-art training facilities,

and a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

Adapted from The Twelve Days of Christmas song, written by Frederick Austin

We will stay in Riccione, a popular seaside town on the Adriatic Sea.

Our hotel, the three-star superior Hotel Poker- Riccione, will be our home base. Floors will be reserved for us, with double- and triple-room configurations.

We will dine at local restaurants and the hotel (PS Their tagliatelle alla Bolognese is divine!)

Walter Giacometti Simone Rocca Renzo Andorno Stefano Messina Cliff Rubin Jennifer Mirsky Raphi Salem

We know how to have fun!

We’ll visit local beaches and the biggest water park in Europe.

Give your child an unforgettable summer camp experience.

Schedule a call and we’ll tell you more!

Visit https://www.orcitaly.com

In Italian, they call this “an embarrassment of riches” (un imbarazzo di ricchezza).

We’ll tour historic towns, study Italian, and sample local cuisine.

Give your child an unforgettable experience.

Schedule a call and we’ll tell you more!

Visit https://www.orcitaly.com