The white coffin of Simona Cinà, the young volleyball player found lifeless in a villa’s swimming pool during a graduation party one week ago, was met by an entire town gathered in Capaci’s main square. Her teammates, united for a final farewell, stood at the center near the Mother Church, all wearing their friend’s number 24 playing jersey. Alongside them were the young players Simona had coached. Emotions ran high, with many tears shed, particularly when her parents arrived – mother Giusy, father Luciano, twin sister Roberta, and brother Gabriele.
The journey bringing the coffin from the Palermo Polyclinic’s forensic institute, where an autopsy was performed on the 20-year-old, to Capaci was long. A motorway accident blocked the funeral procession for an hour. “Simona’s death represents a piece of this town’s future that is gone. Today’s turnout proves it,” said Capaci Mayor Pietro Puccio. “Only the forgotten truly die. She will not be forgotten. She will always remain in our memory.”
The Termini Imerese Prosecutor’s Office is investigating the death, opening a manslaughter case against unknown persons. The autopsy confirmed Simona died by drowning, ruling out pre-existing cardiac conditions or malformations. Toxicological tests are awaited to determine what caused the apparent sudden illness that likely caused the athlete to lose consciousness before drowning.
The priest officiating the funeral, Don Giuseppe Salamone, firmly demanded the truth: “Clarity must be brought to what happened in those tragic 50 minutes,” he stated during the homily. Simona’s family had previously raised questions: “Why did no one notice she was unwell in the water?” and “Why was no one alerted?” It was Simona’s mother who discovered something was wrong after calling her daughter’s phone when she didn’t return home; a friend answered, urging the mother to rush to the villa.
Upon arrival, the Cinà family reportedly felt the garden and pool area appeared to have been cleaned. However, the Prosecutor’s Office has firmly denied any tampering with the scene occurred. “Yours is immense pain,” the priest continued, “it is not natural for parents to mourn their children.”
Outside the church, a colleague who worked with Simona at a nightclub in recent months waited. “She was attentive, even professionally. I find it very hard to believe she could have lost control,” he said, referring to suggestions she may have fainted or become ill due to intoxication. The ceremony concluded with prolonged applause and white balloons released as the volleyball player’s coffin departed, followed by her mother clutching her daughter’s photo to her chest.