The XXXIX edition of the Celleno Cherry Festival returns this June with a storyline worthy of the grandest sporting stages — Europe’s number one, the world’s number two, and 5.71 metres standing between him and immortality.
On Sunday, 7 June 2026, at 5:00 p.m., local hero Mauro Chiavarino — European record holder and second in the all-time world rankings — will step onto the Sputodromo with one goal in mind: to surpass the 28.51 metres (93 ft 6.5 in) that American Brian “Young Gun” Krause launched into the Guinness World Records books. Chiavarino’s own mark of 22.80 metres, set in 2018, already places him at the summit of European competition. This June, he intends to climb higher still.
The Sputodromo — a purpose-built competition platform designed by architect Massimo Fordini Sonni, set within the village’s public gardens — will host competitors from Italy and across the globe. The championship was founded by Professor Saverio Senni of the University of Tuscia’s Department of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, a Celleno resident who imported the tradition from the United States and gave it an unmistakably Italian soul. True to his academic rigour, Prof. Senni established a strict regulatory framework that governs every aspect of the competition: a dedicated panel of judges and an official oversight committee enforce rules that leave nothing to chance. Chief among them is the requirement that only cherry pits sourced exclusively from the Municipality of Celleno may be used in competition — a rule that ties every throw to the land itself and ensures the authenticity of each and every attempt. No shortcuts. No exceptions. No imported pits.
That transatlantic connection now carries an added edge: the record Chiavarino is chasing belongs to an American, and Celleno intends to bring it home to Europe.
Set just one hour from Rome, Celleno is no ordinary arena for such ambitions. The “Ghost Village” with its hauntingly beautiful abandoned medieval quarter has been celebrated by The Telegraph as one of the 25 most beautiful lost-in-time places in Italy. This summer, it becomes the stage for a genuine Guinness World Record attempt.
The Cherry Festival surrounds the championship with tastings, cultural performances, exhibitions and cherry-themed celebrations throughout. Europe’s finest is ready. The American record is within range. On 7 June, history may well be made in Celleno.
