Cycling wrapped in the Italian flag. Three years after Elia Viviani at the Tokyo Olympics, the honor of being the Italian flag bearer will fall to Luca Mazzone, who will be the Italian standard bearer in the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Paralympics 2024, scheduled for next August 28th (opening image CIP, Mazzone with Ambra Sabatini, another standard-bearer).
Two silver medals in swimming at Sydney 2000 and then a glittering career in handcycling, which saw him conquer 3 golds and 3 silvers between Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020The last high point at the Games, in the name of Alex Zanardi, we told you about it on these pages Directly from the Fuji racetrack: that splendid gold medal won by the Italian trio, completed by Paolo Cecchetto and Diego Colombari. Once again, the dedication is for those who continue to be an inspiration to the entire movement. A historic first, as no cyclist has ever held this role in the history of the Paralympics.
Luca, what did you feel when you received the news?
It's an honor I never thought of and that It repays me for many years of sporting activity. I thank the Italian Paralympic Committee for the decision. The fact that my name was proposed by the president Luca Pancalli makes me even more proud.I started playing sports thanks to him. In 1996, while watching TV, I was struck by the news of one of his sporting achievements. The desire to emulate him stirred something inside me that led me first to the swimming pool and then to Paralympic cycling. I also thank the Italian Cycling Federation, which has allowed me, over the years, to realize that dream and those ambitions. I hope that my story and my successes can represent an example, as Pancalli was for me, helping to get many boys and girls out of the house to play sports.
How did they tell you?
On Monday, April 29, while I was on the plane, leaving for Ostend, I received a first call. I was about to put my phone on airplane mode and then I see it ringing and a number with the Roman area code appears. I usually don't answer unknown callers, but this time I did, and the other line was President Pancalli's secretary. Then they put me through to Luca and he tells me, recommending me not to reveal it to anyone, that his intention was to propose me as the Italian standard-bearerI didn't believe it.
And then what?
I didn't hear anything else, until Wednesday's call from the president of the Cycling Federation, Cordiano Dagnoni. He was the one who confirmed everything to me and congratulated me. Yesterday, the news was made public and the phone continued to ring like crazy, but it was very pleasant.
Who do you dedicate it to?
As I wrote to my national teammates in our Whatsapp group, I said I'm taking them all with meEveryone who participated and their results, from Alex to the latest additions to the team. Not to mention the staff and everyone who has come and gone over the eleven years I've been handcycling.
At the mention of Zanardi's name, your voice trembled…
I think Alex will be proud of me. We reached this historic milestone together: it's the first time for a Paralympic cyclist and I want to share it with him. At last month's Italian Championships in Montesilvano, his wife Daniela approached me. I didn't have the courage to ask how she was, because I respect their privacy and I like to remember other unforgettable moments. For example, Rio's hug at the end of the relay victory, when he held me tight as if I were his sonThese are things you don't expect from champions who usually show such composure to achieve any victory, yet underneath their tough exterior, they're truly tenderhearted. I always remember him in that embrace and for the unfailing irony during our countless training camps and outings together. I only asked Daniela to give him a big hug.
What do you expect from the Paris Games?
At the last stage of the World Cup in Ostend I wanted to show my opponents that Luca Mazzone is still there. I may not get a full haul or be top of the class, but I'm ready to roar and with well-sharpened clawsI expect to make a good impression and give my opponents a hard time.
How do you manage to hold on like this without your ID?
Sometimes I ask myself that too. However, when I get on the handbike, I feel like newIt's hard to explain in a few words. I don't want it to sound like a boast, but I've always been active, both before and after the accident. I never stopped, and that was my strength. I hope to inspire so many young people: on the identity card there is a number, but my sporting age is different. Then, having a mentor like Alex taught me never to give up, both physically and in mechanical research. It's a constant evolution, and sometimes, when I win competitions, I'm almost more pleased with Luca the mechanic than the athlete.
What will it be like sharing the Italian flag with Ambra Sabatini?
We met in Tokyo and I see in her the same flame that burned inside me when I was young.She has the eyes of a tiger, and it's a source of pride for me, at 53, to represent my Puglia and all of Italy alongside such a young, yet already successful, girl.
You will receive the flag from the hands of the President of the Republic: have you thought about it?
In these years, I was lucky enough to meet Ciampi first and then MattarellaReceiving the flag from the hands of the highest official in the state already makes my arms tremble: I hope I can hold it as well as possible. Luckily, thanks to cycling, they are well trained and ready to make you dream again.
