Written by Diana Pintus
Translated by Martina Ferlisi
Warmth
A good beginning bodes well, in the shining gold sun filtering from the window. In the happy smile of the newsagent of Gloria, saying hello: “hoje voltou o calor”, he decrees. Today the heat is back.
And the hot is relentless, a hot to be unable to breathe, which blocks on scoreless Murcielagos and Seleção Brazilian of the five a side football for the blind that are both still first in the round and go to the semi-finals. A hot that forces the Olympic Park crowd to fight to take refuge in the shadow. A shadow that is almost absent, who designed the Olympic Park did not think of it. Therefore you can only be packed, amassed, taking turns, offering water, exchanging sweats, flushed and surprised words, because “knowing that there are people with disabilities who do sports, at these levels, is one thing but seeing them in action is another.”
These words a carioca woman tells us, about to faint, she bought the first ticket a bit ‘by chance and then, she returns for three consecutive days: “We have already seen the football, basketball, goalball. Now swimming, sitting volleyball, then we would like to see also an athletics competition, but we do not know what to see … there is an athlete from Bergamo, isn’t true? “From Bergamo? I reply. “Yes, there is, Martina, Martina Caironi. But why?” “We have a cousin who lives in Bergamo …” her daughter tells us, who, with her brother, collects pins, she already has about thirty pins at the neck and follows everyone to see if she can do some exchange . “When is the competition of this girl? We would love to cheer for her.” International Parochialism. We encourage it as much as possible, of course.
International Parochialism like ours that we dress like fans for our favourite sport ever, the bocce game.
Entering, the contrast between the bleachers full, cheerful, noisy, and the press box, almost empty strikes us. The game of the bocce does not even have the television coverage in Rio 2016. “It’s shameful. It is the most inclusive sport ever and it has no place in the Paralympics? In short, if not here, where else? It is a pity, even because if this sport is not divulged, no one will understand how it works. For example, the spectators who came yesterday, today are beginning to applaud at the right times. Yesterday it was very funny: there were explosions in the most unexpected moments … today goes already better! Sure, it makes you angry: yesterday, that Brazil won the gold medal in the BC3 category, suddenly everybody turned around here. Personalities, godmothers came to try the ball. However, I wonder: why only after the gold? Why isn’t there this interest every day? “.
The Bocce game family
Idenilza Ferreira, the mother of Lucas Araujo, athlete in the BC2 category, oversees the bleachers with her husband Samuel. They are two parents always present, always available: to accompany, to facilitate, to support. But also to let him go, Lucas, to let him live his life. While he is throwing, they remain silent, only breaking this silent to incite Lucas to keep calm. “Quiet, filho!” – Idenilza shouts. “I could understand when he is tense, nervous. I see from the position of his shoulders. From the way he close them, he sags “.
She, however, talkative, when Lucas is on the field, suddenly becomes silent. To act as her counterpart, there is Estephani, Lucas’ best friend, who shouts, trembles, cheers. She suffers, gets excited and argues, even during the first match of the round that Lucas lost against the Portuguese Valente, with a woman among the public who comments, “no matter who wins, they are already all winners to be here.”
“Would you say the same thing in a match of the national football team? This is a competition, a game! Those in the field are not poor creatures! They are people! “.
They are athletes, and like all the athletes, they win and lose. He lost the first game, Lucas, perhaps suffering a bit the inexperience. He starts attacking and makes the first point but then he gives up, his throws become inaccurate, he gets nervous and he gets wrong. At the end, the Portuguese Valente is the one who throws closer to the white ball that marks the score and wins. At the match of the evening that is decisive, the climate is tense, but then it relaxes: this time the rival, the Chinese Zhong, can do nothing, and Lucas closes the game 9 to 0. Now we have to wait for the result of today to know if Sapinho (Little Frog, this the Lucas’ nickname in national team) will access to the quarterfinals, thus feeding a chain of beauty, of torcida, of heat, the heat of that great, wonderful family that is the bocce game.
The longest race
A warmth that we pack and bring with us, in addition to the hot weather. A warmth that multiplies inside the Aquatic Stadium, where, meanwhile, after the morning qualification, seven Italian swimmers reached the final. Fabrizio Sottile in the 100 breaststroke SB12, Vincenzo Boni in the 50 free style S3, Francesco Bocciardo in 400 freestyle S6, Arianna Talamona in the 200m medley SM7, Valerio Taras in 200 medley SM7, Emanuela Romano in the 400m freestyle S6, Martina Rabbolini in the S11 100 breaststroke. Considering the numbers of the finals, we would like to see a medal, and promptly, we do not even have time to sit down that it comes: gold. In the 400 style, the longest race.
“What happened is that I started too slow, I did not feel very well, and I immediately realized that to succeed I would have to immediately turn the situation, and then it was an instant: I did a jerk and I led the way. And I stayed there until the end. “It’s a hot day even for Francesco Bocciardo. He knows that this is his race, he knows he can win it and that to do so he must give that something more, and he succeeds, he relies on itself, he takes the risk of spending too much energy and going into oxygen debt, on the awareness of being able to handle this jerk. He succeeds, with the time of 5’02 “15, winning after leading the whole competition. From Genova, he is a model student of political science: “I finished my bachelor in two years and I am going to complete the five-year cycle, graduating a year earlier. In my life there is not only swimming, I have many passions, including that of managing, together with some friends, a portal that deals with cinema. I want to emphasize this, that I am a person who does so many things. In the future, I would like to work in public administration and continue to represent my country as I did in swimming. “
A golden boy, who has given us another thrill of the first time: the first time of an Italian Olympic gold medal, the podium, the national anthem, the flag rising. Our first gold, actually the second for Italy, after that of Frederico Morlacchi, which comes in addition to the rain of this morning: Alex Zanardi, Vittorio Podesta and Luca Mazzone in cycling, Assunta Legnante in athletics. Six! In addition to the seven silvers and eight bronzes. A beauty that is hard to keep accounts! And who knows, maybe right now other medals are coming, with seven Italian athletes competing in foil, including the world champion in office Bebe Vio.
Thanks to Francesco for his patience, and because we will not forget his medal so easily. Thanks to Lucas, Idenilza, Samuel and Estephani.