Few gyms and old facilities: Italian sport far from Europe

Engineering and sport. A binomial that recalls sports techniques, equipment, athlete safety, the potential of big data and artificial intelligence, extends to the world of motors, but above all has to do with sports facilities, a priority and emergency in our country, to which the National Council of Engineers wanted to dedicate the national day on 4 April. 'Since the beginning of this century with the Turin Olympics, up to Milan Cortina 2026, there have been no public investments in the sector,' says the president of the Engineers Angelo Domenico Perrini, 'but that of the facilities remains an asset that creates aggregation and offers services to the community, beyond specific sporting events, as has been happening for some time in Spain and the United Kingdom. And there are too many projects that do not reach the construction site, blocked by authorisations, bureaucratic red tape, and even conflicting opinions'.

Engineers turn the spotlight on engineering and architectural works by emphasising the socio-economic dimension of their scope, and the complexity of a sector that has to do with acoustics, summer and winter comfort, fire-fighting facilities, facility management, and management over time with a mix of functions that goes far beyond sport and has to do with the 'commercial exploitation' that private individuals who are investing in these facilities are well aware of. Issues that inevitably become drivers for design solutions. And the risk analysis, the cost-benefit analysis, rather than the social return on investment are the guide to support or not support the operations.

Among others, it is Massimo Majowiecki, entering into the merits with a focus on structures, who reiterates that in order to approach design choices, it is necessary to define upstream the cost per spectator in stadiums (3,000 euro for the Juventus stadium, 10,000 for Wembley Stadium in London, 4,800 for the Allianz Arena in Munich to give a few examples).

"According to the report 'The GDP of Sport 2023' by the Institute for Sports Credit (Ics), sport is a strategic sector for the Italian economy, contributing around EUR 22 billion, 1.3 per cent of the national GDP. But without adequate infrastructure it cannot fully unfold its beneficial effects'. Gianluca Calvosa, founder and director of Open Economics intervened in the debate, recalling that, in recent times, the regulations on sports infrastructures have evolved in an increasingly stringent way (compliance, tender code, integrated budget, public debate) and at the same time holistically, due to the need to involve all stakeholders in the process. This is echoed by Giovanni Malagò, president of the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI), who, stressing Italy's exceptionality in terms of the number of medals, adds, 'the situation of sports facilities has never been so dramatic, certified by everyone, from managers to politicians. What is needed is a Marshall Plan put in place by people who know the subject matter, who take medium- and long-term decisions and responsibilities. The NRP was a missed opportunity, with 0.34% of the resources allocated to sport'. More in detail, 1 billion euros, 700 million for sports facilities and 300 million for school gyms, says the minister for sport and youth Andrea Abodi, who highlights the criticality by moving away from large stadiums or so-called 'display facilities' (such as those designed in view of the Olympics to be followed remotely, as in the case of the new Arena in Milan), and highlighting two points that require a collective reaction: "almost 60 per cent of Italian schools do not have a gymnasium and 80 per cent of Italian sports infrastructures are not energy efficient", on the other hand "in Italy we count 131 facilities every 100 thousand inhabitants, 22 per cent less than the European average, and 44 per cent of these were built between the 1970s and 1980s, and 8 per cent are not actually functioning today (if the data are limited to the South, the percentage rises to 20 per cent)".

Sandro Catta, councillor of the Cni, concludes by adding other data that justify the emergency: 'one structure in two lacks a certificate of static suitability; the issue of checking seismic vulnerability is even less important, and even for fire prevention certification we are at just over 50 per cent throughout the country. For fitness, we again stand at half of the facilities. Resources are needed above all to be allocated to what exists; in line with the choices of Milan-Cortina, which on a territorial scale has committed itself to investing in infrastructure, making the most of what already exists'.