Athletics and swimming. The new generation of stars
Some fresh and encouraging news from the world of sport: not from football, but from athletics, swimming, volleyball (and others)
Exhausted by the relentless weather and news reports that spare us no grief or other unwelcome tidings (fortunately, in Garlasco at least, everyone has gone on holiday), we are given a boost by some fresh and encouraging news from the world of sport.
Not from football, where we are still reeling from the rather surreal events surrounding the reorganisation of the national team and the overall decline of our clubs, but from sports such as athletics, swimming, volleyball and others that we stubbornly regard as ‘minor’ and which, on the contrary, despite our visceral obsession with football (partly overshadowed by tennis), continue to bring us enormous satisfaction, both in terms of results and in terms of growth and social impact.
We used to be able to say that winning five gold medals, as Chiara Pellacani did at the European Diving Championships in Paris, was a strange coincidence down to sheer good fortune (even though Tania Cagnotto, not so long ago, had set us high standards); now, however, faced with the shower of medals pouring in from the Seine (Ginevra Taddeucci’s double victory in the 5km and 10km events was fantastic) and more that could arrive as early as today from the European Aquatics Championships, also in Paris, it’s only natural to ask ourselves: how on earth did we become so strong?
What has happened over the last few years? Have we been too distracted? Since when have we been consistently producing so many established talents (such as Thomas Ceccon and Nicolò Martinenghi) and rising stars like Sara Curtis and Simona Quadarella? And we could go on with Simone Cerasuolo (who is aiming for a double in the 50m and 100m breaststroke) and Benedetta Pilato, who, following last summer’s unfortunate incident in Singapore, seems to have fully recovered. Not to mention Gregorio Paltrinieri who, at almost 32 years of age, with the humility of a young apprentice, managed to secure a bronze in the men’s 5 km event.
The truth? We’re no longer afraid of anyone. Not the French, the hosts, nor the British or the Germans. They’re no match for us. Even Russia’s larger contingent (competing under the banner of Individual Neutral Athletes) doesn’t worry us all that much. We’re strong and confident in our own abilities. Not so long ago in swimming, we were reliant on Federica Pellegrini’s exploits; everything revolved around the formidable talents of ‘La Divina’. ‘You had to have Fede,’ people would say admiringly. Now there’s a movement. A strong, collective one. There’s no longer a queen, but a self-aware nation.
