Pierluigi Marzorati turns 70, the historic play of Cantù and Italy

“To go and play at the oratory, I ran away from the study window of our house on the first floor. It was the only way not to let my mother see me …”. The oratory is that of Montesolaro Figino and, later, of San Michele a Cantù. That child turns 70 today and is called Pierluigi Marzorati, for inspiration, basketball intelligence, game vision, the best Italian playmaker ever.

A life for Cantù

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It is easy to geolocate the legend of the “Pierlo”, “of the flying engineer” (he has a degree in civil engineering). Marzorati means Cantù, the myth of the winning province that made the fortunes of our basketball, the home club (Pierlo di Figino Serenza, a neighboring municipality) that helps to bring you to the peaks of Europe and the world. He joined the Brianza club at the age of 13 in 1965, leaving it on April 28, 1991, at 39. And, above all, winning everything. A detail that is not exactly secondary. When Arnaldo Taurisano decides to put the team in his hand, the news becomes history. At the age of 17, in 1969, he made his debut in Serie A then, to understand its greatness, just squadernate the palmares: two championships (1975 and 1981), two Champions Cups (1982 and 1983), four Korac Cups (1973, 1974 , 1975, 1991), two Intercontinental Cups (1975 and 1982) and four Cups of 1977, 1978, 1979 and 1981. From the undisputed emblem of the golden age of the Allievi family that has made generations of canturini dream. A longevity that became a legend in 2006 when Marzorati, to celebrate the 70 years of the Brianza club, decided at 54 springs to officially get back on the pitch in the match against Treviso: almost two minutes that make him the first player to have played official matches for five decades consecutive. From guinness. In all 693 appearances and 8659 points with the Cantù shirt of which he was also vice president from 1991 to 1996.

In the national team

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And then the personal awards: king of the balls recovered in the 1971, 1972, 1985 championship and lord of the assists in the 1974 and 1975 championship, the fundamental that perhaps best represents his sporting depth. “The assist is worth more – he said – it is an act of altruism towards teammates, the basket is more of a selfish fact”. But the myth of Pierlo also has other shades. Like the blue, that of the national team, where he has written indelible pages of history. Here too it is a long march: star of the youth national teams with which he hits a European bronze under 18 and then a giant of an Italy that was respected in Europe and beyond. He was one of the gold heroes of Nantes to which he added three other European bronzes. He has participated in four Olympics, winning silver in Moscow 1980. He holds the record for appearances in blue (277) with 2223 points scored (fifth all time). He is also, of course, in the Italian hall of fame and in the Fiba hall. Cantù basketball, his second skin, celebrates him like this: “The myth, the icon, the emblem of canturinity and love for our jersey. Italian basketball fans. Those who have not seen him play cannot even imagine what they have lost “. True. Happy birthday Pierlo.