Francesca Lollobrigida, the growth journey of a champion
The Olympian recounts the human and sporting journey to the summit at the Tridentine Diocesan Museum. Speed is useful if you can also take curves
A sporting journey, but also a journey of personal growth and responsibility experienced by Olympic and world speed skating gold medallist Francesca Lollobrigida.
The Italian champion, in dialogue with journalist Enrico Galletti, told the public at the Festival of Economics in Trento in the evocative setting of the Diocesan Museum, organised alongside the exhibition 'Italia in movimento. Autostrade per il futuro' set up by Autostrade per l'Italia.
Conscious Speed
'Speed counts,' explained the Italian athlete, 'but only if it is accompanied by responsibility and respect for the rules'. A strong message, especially in a time marked by constant distractions and the abuse of smartphones even when driving. For Lollobrigida, in fact, travelling has never been just a journey. It was fatigue, experience, sacrifice, but also family and sharing. As a Roman child in love with ice, she crossed Italia countless times to reach the slopes of the North with her parents. "My mother couldn't keep me still," she said, smiling and remembering those trips made up of chats in the car, dreams and kilometres travelled together. The journey to the training site - which passed right through Trento - was a long one, because there are only two tracks in Italia, but it also gave her the opportunity to spend precious time with her loved ones and to get to know places to which she became attached.
Bends and straights
The images projected during the meeting took the champion back to the most intense moments of her career. "In those competitions I retraced all the roads, curves and straights of my life," she confessed, visibly emotional as she reviewed the Olympic images.
Behind every medal, however, there is never just one athlete. "The medals are mine, but there is a team sport behind them," she pointed out, emphasising the importance of the support of her family, coaches, and all the people who have shared journeys, training, and sacrifices with her over the years. A path built with patience and determination up to the gold, conquered after years of work and after becoming a mother.
