hiː ˈɔːlsoʊ wˈʌn ðə sˈɛkənd pɹˈaɪz æt ðə "keɪsˈɛlə" ˌɪntɚnˈæʃənəl kˌɑːmpətˈɪʃən ɪn nˈeɪpəlz ænd ɪn tˈuː θˈaʊzənd wˈʌn hiː wˈʌn ðə fˈɜːst pɹˈaɪz ɪnðə "dʒˈeɪ.ˈɛs.bˈɑːx piˈænoʊ ˌɪntɚnˈæʃənəl kˌɑːmpətˈɪʃən" ɪn sˈɑːɹbɹuːkən, dʒˈɜːməni fˈɪfti fˈoːɹ pˈiənɪsts fɹʌm twˈɛnti sˈɪks kˈʌntɹiz tˈʊk pˈɑːɹt.
He also won the second prize at the "Casella" International Competition in Naples and in 2001 he won the first prize in the "J.S.Bach Piano International Competition" in Saarbrücken, Germany (54 pianists from 26 countries took part).