From Calcio to the Olympics, Athletes Raise Italian Spirits

Molisana Wins Historic Olympic Medal

Molisana Wins Historic Olympic Medal

At this time last year, Italy was reeling from the effects of COVID-19 as one of the hardest hit countries in the world. The sting of lost lives, strained health care resources and social isolation took a fearful toll on the Italian spirit. But that spirit, embodied in the people of Italy and the descendants of Italian immigrants to countries around the globe, was never broken. In September 2021, sports have given all of us a common rallying point to warm our hearts and souls. You do not have to be a sports fan to appreciate the thrill of seeing young men and women push themselves to the limit while representing their country and their culture, our shared culture.

Football Team Stuns Europe — and the World

Since Italy’s stunning triumph in the 2006 World Cup of international soccer (known as football to the rest of the world and calcio in Italy), the national team’s performance had slipped significantly in major competitions, culminating in their failure even to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. This was an unthinkable disgrace for a perennial football power where calcio is a national passion. So, going into the prestigious and highly competitive Euro 2020 tournament, played a year late because of the pandemic, Italy was not considered to be on the same level as the likes of Belgium, France, Spain and England. Roberto Mancini, a former player on the national team and on several top clubs in Europe, had other ideas.

Taking over as manager of Italy’s squad, Mancini brought in a new generation of players and instilled a system that called for flair and creativity coupled with Italy’s traditional reliance on strong defense. Italy sailed undefeated through the first round, playing with a joy and passion that had been missing from the Italian team. In the second round, against tougher competition, the Azzuri defeated the number one ranked Belgium squad, then won a heart stopping game against Spain. Facing England in the final in London, Mancini’s men fell behind early, steadied themselves under the leadership of team captain Giorgio Chellini, tied the game and held England scoreless the rest of the way. They then clinched the trophy with a dramatic win on penalty kicks.

Italy  — and Italian neighborhoods across the world  — exploded in celebration. The website “Wanted in Rome” reported that the celebration in the Italian capital was so loud, it registered on equipment used to monitor earthquakes. The Associated Press quoted a young Neapolitan as saying, “This means so much. To finally be able to feel the joy that we’ve been missing, it goes beyond sports.”

Strong Showing in the Olympics

Lamont Marcell Jacobs celebrates his victory win the men’s 100-meter sprint

Like the Euro tournament, the 2020 Summer Olympic Games held in Tokyo were delayed a year by the pandemic. And as with the football tournament, Italy surprised everyone. Italian athletes won 40 medals: 10 gold, 10 silver and 20 bronze, the nation’s highest total ever. Along the way, Italian athletes provided some of the most memorable moments of the games. Lamont Marcell Jacobs on August 1 stunned the track community when he took the gold medal in the prestigious men’s 100-meter sprint.

Jacobs became the first Italian ever to win a medal in an event long dominated by athletes from the United States and, more recently, Jamaica. Jacobs was born in El Paso, Texas, to an Italian mother and African-American father. His parents split when Jacobs was very young.His mother Viviana took him to Italy and raised her son in Desenzano on the southern shore of Lake Garda in the region of Lombardy. Jacobs also anchored the Italian men’s 4 X 100 meter sprint relay team in their gold medal effort. On the same day as Jacobs’ win, Gianmarco Tamberi shared the gold medal in the men’s high jump. After Tamberi and his friend and rival Mutaz Barshim of Qatar had completed all their jumps, the two were tied at the top of the standings. The athletes agreed to share the gold medal, allowed under Olympic rules, and images of their joyous embrace won hearts throughout the world. Moments later, Tamberi was among the first to greet Jacobs after his victory.

Italy’s captain Giorgio Chellini (2nd from left holding cup) led his teammates in celebrating their Euro 2020 triumph. C

A First for Molise

Italian men and women also won gold medals in race walking, cycling, sailing, rowing, karate and taekwondo, but we in the AMHS are especially proud of a bronze medalist in judo. Maria Centracchio was born in Castel di Sangro in the province of L’Aquila in Abruzzo, and raised in the province of Isernia in Molise. On July 27, she defeated Juul Franssen of the Netherlands for the bronze medal in the women’s 63 kg class judo event. Centracchio thus becomes the first athlete from Molise to win an Olympic medal in an individual sport.

In 1996, Pasquale Grania was part of the volleyball team that took a silver medal, and in 1936, Aldo Masciotta participated in the Italian team’s silver medal victory in the saber competition in fencing. To our sister Molisana, and to all of the football players and Olympic athletes, your extended Italian family offers a huge molto grazie for lifting our spirits in a troubled world. ❚