Tomorrow, Saturday, the first men’s and women’s foil finals. The n.1 Federscherma Mazzone: “A special, spectacular and inclusive edition”
A fairytale scenario. In a location probably unique in the world. Rome, in this period “sporty” as never before, becomes the protagonist of fencing from 30 May to 4 June thanks to the holding of the Italian Olympic and Paralympic championships with a formula that combines inclusion and one of the symbolic places of the Eternal City. The heart of the event will in fact be the Terrazza del Pincio, which will host the final stages of the Assoluti, where “our Olympic and Paralympic champions will be there. This could be the first of a series of great events for Italian fencing. Ours is a clean movement, we also have a mission of values that we must carry forward. Let’s go back to the championships together, ours is an inclusive federation. It is a great emotion and I believe that this showcase will be the antechamber of what will be the 2028, when there will be the Youth and Cadet World Championships”, said the federal president, Luigi Mazzone, while the n.1 of the CIP, Marco Giunio De Sanctis, in reiterating the importance of inclusion that “fencing has understood, while other sports still haven’t. If everyone had unified championships we could achieve great results not only sporting but also cultural”, he then raised a cry of alarm: “After the Paralympics in Milan Cortina we are in difficulty economic, we had to deal with the prizes and it is a discussion that we will address with Coni and the Government. We need funds and support because Paralympic sport is growing, there are disciplines that are not part of the sporting panorama, but which have the right to practice sport”.
visibility
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The event will be held not only at the Pincio, but also at the Fiera di Roma with the Under 17 and Under 20 Tricolori scheduled first, then the preliminary phases of the individual and team Serie A1 Championships and finally the Paralympic and blind competitions. “Fencing has always given Italy great visibility. Today we practically have the Olympics in Rome with a series of things that are considered normal but which now are not: from skateboarding to padel, to the arrival of the Giro d’Italia up to taekwondo. With major sporting events we bring great athletes, who generate a positive example, as well as places to practice sports at a grassroots level”, said Alessandro Onorato, councilor for major events, tourism, sport and fashion of Roma Capitale, while Simone Gorini, operations director of AV Trenitalia, partner of the edition now in its 108th year, concluded by underlining how “a sport like fencing transmits important values such as discipline, talent and performance orientation, in addition to the aspect of inclusion”.
dates
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The Absolutes return to the capital after 10 years. The program will start on May 30th with the men’s and women’s foil: individual semi-finals and finals will be staged from 8pm at the Pincio. The following day there will be room for the assaults for the gold in the team trials. On June 1st and 2nd it will be the sabre’s turn, with individual and team finals. The épée will close the triptych on 3 and 4 June, with individual trials and then the matches for team gold. On the final day of June 4th, Paralympic fencing will also go up to the Pincio with the final of the men’s foil category A.
Olympic women
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Also present in the Campidoglio this morning for the presentation of the event were the veteran swordsmen and reigning Olympic champions Rossella Fiamingo and Alberta Santuccio. “The Italian championships are a central event not only for us athletes but also for enthusiasts. In the wonderful setting of the Pincio we will try to involve everyone, the objective will be to win because the desire remains the same even after 19 years of participating”, said Fiamingo, while for his partner Santuccio, fresh from two victories in the World Cup, “it is an honor to be part of this Federation because it is committed to giving visibility to our sport. I hope that many people can follow us and become passionate about our discipline”.
floral tribute
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The Italian Olympians themselves, with the federal president Mazzone, the vice president Francesco Montini and the honorary president Giorgio Scarso, accompanied by Vincenzo De Bartolomeo (Comex of the European Confederation) and other sporting and military authorities, placed a floral tribute in the Gardens of Sixtus IV on the plaques which commemorate the gold medals of Italian fencing, won by the men’s foil and épée teams, at the 1936 Berlin Games. “A dutiful moment of remembrance between the past, present and future of our sport”, recalled President Mazzone in front of the engravings of the names of the foilists Giorgio Bocchino, Manlio Di Rosa, Giulio Gaudini, Gioacchino Guaragna, Gustavo Marzi and Ciro Verratti, and the swordsmen Giancarlo Brusati, Giancarlo Cornaggia-Medici, Edoardo Mangiarotti, Alfredo Pezzana, Saverio Ragno and Franco Riccardi. From tomorrow, therefore, we begin: 1300 athletes in total (including the Youth and Cadets already involved in the Fair), of which 142 participants in the Paralympic fencing competitions and 50 who are blind in the épée competition. On the platform 15 medalists at the Olympic Games (for a total of 23 medals won at the Olympics) and four medalists at the Paralympic Games (there are 9 medals in total from the Paralympics). For eight consecutive days the tricolors will be broadcast live and exclusively on Rai Sport.
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