With victories in the European Cup, as well as the Under-20 European Championships and the EYOF (Under-18) Championships, Italian athletics has allowed federal president Stefano Mei to enjoy a few days of vacation in Villasimius. The lively competition among federal presidents sees them battling for the top spots.
Track and field, tennis, swimming, basketball, volleyball: which is the most successful Italian sport right now?
But they're different disciplines! None, perhaps not even soccer, is as popular as athletics, which is practiced all over the world, from remote islands to the vast continental continent. We're in a golden age, paradoxically better than Tokyo, even though the media impact there has been greater. But we had four days of Junior Athletics live on TV, and that's something that hadn't even occurred to us in my day, with all the great champions there; it's a sign of the interest in our sport. And then if someone from Mars comes and watches tennis, they understand it immediately; athletics is more difficult to grasp the technical movement. But let's be clear, like all Italians, I'm rooting for Sinner. I would have been curious to see what would have happened if Sinner and Tamberi had been at the same time. But it's a great sporting competition, but we're all united.
Athletes, coaches, managers: what is the strength of Italian athletics?
I believe in the unity of the movement. Some turned up their noses when we won the federal elections, thinking there wouldn't be pluralism. Instead, we're demonstrating that greater unity of purpose and less controversy creates the conditions for everything to be done calmly. Then there are those who want to stir up controversy at all costs... but if those in the know read the rulings, they'd understand how specious some of the comments are, even those from famous journalists. If they were to do their research, they'd understand that there are no crimes of opinion, and even though recourse to sports justice has increased, it should be remembered that never before in the last four years have there been so many attacks on the federation and its president. But when it's baseless Facebook chatter, when you're accused of poor ethics and a lack of transparency, there will always be a reaction. For example, a senior CONI official allowed himself to write gratuitous insults in a book, even targeting the CONI president, and it's clear that sports justice will intervene.
