Maino, Mancini conquered by the boy with Down syndrome

“Never give up in the face of difficulties and face every problem as if it were a challenge to move forward”. A life lesson that hits the mark and shakes you inside if Riccardo Maino, 23 years old from Busto Arsizio, in the province of Varese, speaks. “A boy – he says – with Down syndrome, but this did not preclude me from anything: I have always put myself on the line and managed to get great results”. In life and in sport. Gymnastics, which he fell in love with at the age of seven watching a performance by Jury Chechi, gold medalist at the Atlanta ’96 Olympics, on TV.

world gold at parallels

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Today the “lord of the rings” has become Riccardo, an Inter fan and a hard worker in the gym. Parallel, horse with handles, rings, free body, nothing scares him. In 2016, at the age of 18, at the Trisome Games in Florence he made all Italy talk about himself by finishing third in the general classification, with a gold at the parallels, a silver (on the horse) and a bronze (on the rings), in an event that had gathered 800 people including athletes and technicians from 36 countries.

Today one of his interviews was published in the podcast “Stories of others” by journalist Carmelo Abbate and also impressed the national team coach, Roberto Mancini, who took Riccardo to heart and shared the story on his social channels, giving him enormous prominence. the popularity of the coach Well so, given that the champion from Busto Arsizio is truly an example for all those who struggle every day to overcome their limits, whatever they may be. Meanwhile, he continued to collect metal around his neck and got to know his idol Jury Chechi. In 2021 he won seven medals (five gold) in Rimini at the national championships and three at the absolute winter.

driving license, work, friends

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But the “great results” of which Riccardo is proud are not only those obtained with the Pro Patria gymnastics, with which he trained nine hours a week already at school. These are also the satisfactions that he had, precisely, on the desks of the artistic high school, graphic address, where he graduated. “So when my sisters got married I took care of the invitations,” he proudly explains. And with the family. At 14 he tried skiing and it went very well, when he got it into his head to learn to drive he managed to get his license in a short time. Today he works as a warehouse keeper in a pharmacy in Busto, and when he wins a title he never fails to offer his friends a drink. In addition, he lends a hand as a volunteer of the Red Cross, during the Covid emergency also in the vaccination hub of Malpensafiere. Without losing sight of his biggest dream: participating in the Paralympics.