Giovanni Malagò prende in braccio Diana Bianchedi, Giuseppe Sala festeggia urlando con Luca Zaia, Giampiero Ghedina e Attilio Fontana non trattengono le lacrime di gioia, mentre intorno sventolano i tricolori e si alza l’urlo ‘Italia, Italia’. Giancarlo Giorgetti instead goes to greet the Swedish leaders, but on the other hand he had already started singing Abba an hour earlier, savouring what would have been the crushing success of Milan-Cortina, over Stockholm-Aare (47 to 34, one abstention). In seven years the Winter Olympics (6-22 February) and Paralympics (6-15 March) will be in Italy (twenty years after Turin 2006) and the images of the celebrations give the impression of a country that is rediscovering euphoria and unity in times of economic crisis and social tensions, with a project supported by political forces that are not exactly aligned. And at the same time it marks the distance between the locomotive Milan and Rome, which abandoned the race towards the Olympics halfway. “A scar that can still be seen. Raggi did not trust me, Sala, Zaia, Fontana and Ghedina did”, Malagò says lapidary in the only bitter note of a conference in which he struggles to contain his enthusiasm for having achieved a goal for which he has worked for over a year together with the other administrators and the delegation (he thanked them one by one, without forgetting anyone, including of course President Sergio Mattarella “our captain”). A success sealed not only with the dossier (the guarantees were also decisive, 93% of existing or temporary facilities and strong popular support), but also with a presentation revised 48 hours earlier, with the choice to focus on the smile, enthusiasm and brilliance of the Italian Olympians, Sofia Goggia, Michela Moioli, Arianna Fontana, and the very young Elisa Confortola. “I think the girls won some votes, or maybe a lot of votes,” smiled Malagò, who opened the final presentation alongside the president of the Paralympic Committee Luca Pancalli, marking another gap with the Swedes, not a little irritated by their eighth Olympic failure. Then the video message from the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, launched by the Prime Minister, Giuseppe Conte, who after his speech in front of the IOC members left Lausanne and learned of the success before boarding the plane to Geneva: “We are proud of this great result! Italy won: an entire country that worked together and compactly with the ambition of creating and offering the world a memorable sporting event”. In the end, everyone rejoices: athletes, technicians, and the politicians who are the protagonists of the candidacy. Except those of the M5S of Turin, who months ago pulled the city out of a project that remained standing also thanks to the diplomatic ability of the undersecretary Giorgetti, recognized by Malagò, as well as by the solid axis between Sala, Zaia and Fontana. Piedmont wants to try to get back into the race, but the statements of President Cirio in recent days have created more or less as much annoyance in the delegation as the statements of the top management of Milan and Inter on the construction of a new stadium next to San Siro which “will be torn down”. “We have guaranteed that San Siro will still be operational in 2026. End of story – Sala had to clarify immediately -. It will be the venue for the opening ceremony.” Another one could take place in Cortina, while the closing will be at the Verona Arena. More serious, perhaps, are the strategic errors of the Swedes, who on the eve spoke of an IOC that "did not understand" their proposal, and in the final presentation attacked: "Is the IOC ready for the new rules or is it just talk?", the provocative question of Gunilla Lindberg, the panzer who in the end was discouraged. “As you know, we beat you in football not so long ago,” said Minister Peter Eriksson, congratulating the Italians. Now we are 1-1”. Ma altro che pareggio, l’Italia con Milano-Cortina si riprende le Olympics, a dream chased and now realized. And the party is truly for everyone.
EDITORIAL TEAM
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