Fabio Perego is the fourth candidate, the one that nobody expected, if only because he was involved until the end in the elections for the Lombardy Regional Committee. Then, defeated, he wrote the second program: this time for the Federal Presidency.
If candidates are to be weighed on the basis of their CV, Martinello is certainly the top of the class as an athlete, but Perego is undoubtedly so for the roles he coveredAthlete and coach. Organizer and politician. Perhaps this is why, according to the delegates who have been indulging in endless calls on digital platforms in recent weeks, Fabio is the one capable of give specific answers.
The general director
The program is concise: 11 condensed pages, which reveal clear ideas and at the same time the little time had to draw it upTo read it, simply click on the previous link, while we would like to focus on a couple of points that caught our attention. First of all, the fact that Perego is the only one to propose the figure of the General ManagerTo clear the air, the joke going around was that Di Rocco would support whoever guaranteed him that role. Perego laughs and begins.
«I'm the only one who brought it up – he says – because I am convinced that it is necessaryThe General Director can also be the same figure as the Secretary General, because in the end they are very close, but he must have certain characteristics. a coordination figure which is essential for achieving objectives. The President can't do everythingThe General Director is a more comprehensive figure, he is the one who verifies the achievement of objectives, the various commissions, the various components of the Federal Council. If we were to go back to when each member of the Council had his own competence and budget to manage, it would also be right to have a coordinating figure who monitors the progress of things and reports to the President. A company general manager is a coordination figure but also control figure.
Race judges
One aspect that both he and Martinello focus on is that of retraining of Race Judges and Race Directors.
"If the Competition Judges' Commission and its President were not appointed by the Federal Council," says Perego, "but within the category, we would already have one less problem. We're talking about autonomy, the judges must work independently because they must not be subjected to any kind of influence. We find an election system, but no one will be able to say that such and such a judge is there because he is someone's friend. Keep in mind that Judges don't vote and keep in mind that meritocracy doesn't always winThe first thing is to give them back their autonomy, and then perhaps some rules need to be revised. One is the one on the maximum age limitYou retire at 70. I know people who are 70 and better off than those who are 50. So I would raise the age limit to 75, evaluating each case individually, so that the most experienced can become a resource for young people, especially within the Regional Commissions. And then there is the 50 year limit to take part in the training coursesI'm 54 years old and couldn't I be a judge? That limit isn't right. Even if you recruit young 18-19 year olds, after a while they take them away and you find yourself without judges."
Race directors
Race directors shoulder the responsibility (including criminal liability) for the convoy. While insurance is required, it's also true that directing a race on the track is one thing, and driving groups of kids around town is another.
«These people they absolutely must be trained – says Perego – they must be aware of what they are doing, of their role. And when a certain level of professionalism is achieved in this role, It's right that we get paid in some way, Because they have really important responsibilities. They need legal protection. They should attend meetings with the Prefects and the Chief of Police. When it comes to safety and race management, the Director is in charge. He's the one who says, "We'll stop the race or we'll cross a river."
The tricolors
A separate chapter of his program focuses on organizational standards of the titled competitions: the Italian championships above all. Is it possible, Perego asks, that each Italian event, in the same year, has different standards?
«I would do as in other federations, in France and Belgium – he says – with a commission (even if only 3 people) that has a technical specification to guarantee a homogeneous organizational standard At least at the major competitions. Dozens of Italian championship matches are held every year. Should the backdrops for interviews be uniform? Should the stages be made the same to mount advertising panels of agreed-upon sizes? It's not possible to have one organization in Usmate and one in Trento. You have to sell uniform packages to sponsorsAt the Italian cross-country championship in Lecce they did everything they could and more. They could have managed the pit area better, they definitely could have done better and they would have succeeded. if the Federation had sent him its commission to provide them with guidelines. It also becomes easier because in the end the Federation can involve its suppliers and offer the professionals with whom it will work continuously."
The off-road vehicle
Off-roading accounts for more than 50 percent of participants. And just as Martinello is surrounding himself with people who embody it, Perego is also keeping his eyes peeled.
«In my opinion – he says – off-road takes up 70 percent of the business, together with BMX. I don't take my 6 year old on the track, I take him on the MTB. Donated by my grandfather to the Usmate bike park. We need to start from here, from this project, and develop the cyclists of tomorrow. We need to resume all the activities and take it back where it can be done. Where you can move. Now also the secondary roads are ring roadsMy wife, who married a man who rides a bike and practically makes a living from it, loses her temper when a race passes in front of her house once a year and she's stopped for 10 minutes while she's trying to go to the bar for breakfast, and you should hear her outburst. And this is where the issue of safety comes in.
«If you go to the Federation's website there is a card, created for people who use the bike to go to work, put there like a thousand projects thrown away without being followed up. Those who use the bike to get around the city they can become membersIf we give them an insurance guarantee first, then conventions with the mechanic, discounts on clothes, discounts on bike hotel holidays... These are data that no one is looking at, but they translate into numbers that can be sold. The Federation is present on the territory, but you have to let the individual Committees work."
Promotion bodies
Finally, the cycle tourism and amateur movement. Gran Fondos as a driving force for youth activity, the big ones serving the small ones. According to a strategy shared by the other candidates. With the difference that Perego also leverages collaboration with tourism promotion agencies.
"You can wage any war you want," he says, "but the institutions are direct emanations of Confindustria and other giants. In fact you need to find a way to collaborate and work togetherThe first is a safety standard and already this year it seems to me they've made it mandatory to have a race director. We need to sit down at a table and find a solution.If you give them appeal and show them what the difference is, then you can win their members over. But if you still think that amateurs are ATMs, it doesn't work.You have to provide services. The provincial committees also help you organize, but of course we have much higher membership costs. Probably because they don't even have a wagon like ours to carry around."
Marketing and comunication
Employees are useful, but they must deliver what they are paid for.
«It is not possible that at the European or World Track Championships – says Perego – the photo of the Italian who wins the medal comes from his cell phone of a press officer. It's impossible for the FCI not to have a contract with a photographer who, after eight minutes, sends you a photo of Ganna, world champion. Communication and marketing must be external, by tender, but they must work. And if they don't, we change. We need a certain standard. The UEC is a small company; it has its own photographer, its own cameraman. We need to move away from the voluntary dimension... ".
