The president of Torino and RCS Mediagroup on the stage of the Sports Festival: “Here is the Disneyland of sport. The betting case? I don’t judge things I don’t know. It’s certainly sad that the national team is losing two important players”
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Urbano Cairo, on the stage of the Teatro Sociale, where the Sports Festival is presented, pretends to be irritated. Irritated because, hanging from a gallery, there is also a Juventus shirt: “Just to remind me that I just lost the derby against Toro…” smiles the president of Granata and RCS Mediagroup. But there is a reason: the shirt, a number 10, is that of Roberto Baggio, the great protagonist of the sixth edition of the pink event. He brought it, to the surprise of some fans.
Trent
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“Like every year – says Cairo, stepping into the shoes of the host – I arrive thinking of staying here for three hours and then I end up staying here for at least three days. The truth is that the city always welcomes us in a fantastic way. It really feels like being in the Disneyland of sport, in an Olympic Village, with so many champions from the present and past on the catwalk. The Festival is a wonderful event: thanks to Trento who, together with us, thinks and organizes this event”.
Tour of Italy
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One of the novelties of this year’s edition is the presentation of the Giro d’Italia: on Friday the entire route of the 2024 race will be revealed. “In Turin – Cairo recalls – we have already presented the first three stages. On the occasion of the premiere on May 4th, the passage through Superga on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the Grande Torino tragedy stands out. With 200 countries and hundreds of millions of people connected, it will become a universal memory. And the next day we will arrive in Oropa, with an inevitable thought of Marco Pantani. And then the arrival in Rome… The rest? A few more hours of patience. In any case it will be a plug-in Giro.”
football and bull
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We can’t help but talk about football: “We need sustainability at all levels – says Cairo -: it’s fundamental. The world of football should also support and feed itself. Especially for those with fewer resources, focusing on young people and nurseries is decisive. Then there is the problem of the stadiums, which need to be renovated. We need to eliminate some bureaucracy.” We return to the derby: “I look ahead – he says – defeats help us grow, we still have 30 games to go. The team is there, it is strengthened. Juric said that we need more fanaticism: he has to convey it… He was very sorry, like everyone. But let’s think about leaving quickly. This team can do good things and improve on last year’s placing.”
betting case
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The current situation also requires a comment on the matter concerning Tonali and Zaniolo, sent home from the national team meeting in Coverciano. “This is bad news – he underlines – but we are waiting for confirmation. I know nothing, as I said about Fagioli. Better not to say anything. I don’t judge things I don’t know. Of course it’s sad that the national team is losing two important players. But even in this case you have to react immediately and do with what you have: Spalletti, then, is not someone who cries over spilled milk. What if he draws from Turin? He knows us, he is a great coach. He is a winner. After a difficult start to his career, he proved to be a super technician.”
the memory
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Finally, Cairo is asked about a memory of Berlusconi: “I am proud to have worked with him – he admits -: I learned a lot. Then I put my personality into it. We worked in many common fields, but he did not enter publishing. When I finished the climb to RCS, he complimented me: “You’ve arrived where I wanted to arrive” he told me.
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