500 days to Rio 2016

Only 500 days separate us from the start of the Games of Rio 2016. The countdown for the XXXI Olympic Games, which will be held in Brazil from 5 to 21 August, continues. The Brazilian city was elected during the IOC session of 2 October 2009 in Copenhagen, beating Madrid in the final vote. The most important sporting event will be held in South America for the first time.

The Olympic programme will include golf and rugby sevens. 10,500 athletes from 205 countries will compete in 43 disciplines over the 17 days of the Games. The events will be held in four areas: Barra, Copacabana, Maracanà (which will host the Opening Ceremony) and Deodoro, while the full programme of the event will go live in two Olympic Parks: Barra Olympic Park and Deodoro Olympic Park. The event is intended to deeply change the heart of the Brazilian city, aiming to accelerate the development process in terms of infrastructure, transport, security and hospitality. Italy has already earned itself 19 Olympic Quotas for Rio 2016: 10 for Sailing (in 7 classes), 6 for Skeet shooting, and 3 for Shooting.

Baku 2015 Beach Soccer draw: Italy with Russian Federation, Spain and Hungary

Baku 2015 today held the draw for the Beach Soccer competition at the inaugural European Games. Robert Prosinečki, who represented Barcelona and Real Madrid during his playing career, and now coaches the Azerbaijani national football team, was joined by FIFA 1998 World Cup and UEFA 2000 European Championship winner Christian Karembeu, who also played for Real Madrid, and now serves as FIFA Beach Soccer Ambassador.

The two football legends made the draw in the presence of national coaches of the qualifying countries, representatives of FIFA and the Azerbaijan Beach Soccer Federation, the Azerbaijani national Beach Soccer team, and Baku 2015 staff.

Mr Karembeu said: “Beach Soccer has all the ingredients to be one of the most entertaining competitions on show in Baku this summer. The fans will love it.

The draw results were as follows:

Group A: Azerbaijan, Portugal, Switzerland and Ukraine.

Group B: Russian Federation, Spain, Italy and Hungary.

The opening match will see Spain play Italy.

Each team will play three matches in the group phase, one against each team in their group. Teams ranked first and second in their group will progress to the semi-finals. Mr Pierce O’Callaghan, Director of Sport at Baku 2015, said: “As one of four non-Olympic sports at Baku 2015, Beach Soccer is one of the innovations which we are proud to be bringing to the first European Games. Baku 2015 will provide a great platform for new fans to get to know this exciting sport, and as a young and dynamic discipline, it is a perfect fit for the European Games. I have no doubt that Beach Soccer will be a great draw for spectators, and look forward to a wonderful competition this summer”. Europe is home to some of the world’s best Beach Soccer teams, including reigning world champions and runners-up Russia and Spain, respectively. Russia also took second place in the 2014 Intercontinental Cup, while Portugal finished third.

Italy-France: Rosolino, Cammarelle and Sensini at Stadio Olimpico to commemorate the three perished French athletes

On Sunday, March 22, on the occasion of the Italy vs France rugby match at Stadio Olimpico, the President of CONI, Giovanni Malagò, will pay tribute to the memory of the three French athletes who tragically died on Tuesday following a helicopter crash in Argentina by inviting the three best Italian Olympic medal winners for the three sports (swimming, boxing and sailing) that were severely affected by the tragedy.

Massimiliano Rosolino, Roberto Cammarelle and Alessandra Sensini will therefore be in the gallery to attend the Italy vs France match, which will also be preceded a minute of silence ordered by the Organizing Committee of the Six Nations Championship.

Pescante presents the Olympic truce. “Sport, an instrument for peace”.

The UN Resolution on the Olympic truce was presented today, in the Hall of Honour, in view of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, with 513 days left until the five circled event. The initiative, organised by the IOC member and Permanent Observer at the UN, Mario Pescante, had a large attendance of many representatives from the world of competitive sports, and some Olympic champions and azzurri medallists capable of writing the history of the movement, such as Manuela Di Centa (Cross Country), Mauro Checcoli (Equestrian Sports), Luca Pancalli (Pentathlon and Paralympic swimming), Novella Calligaris (Swimming), Daniele Masala (Modern Pentathlon) and Nicola Pietrangeli (Tennis). The paralympic athletes Oxana Corsa (Athletics) and Matteo Cavagnini (Wheelchair basketball) were also present.

In addition to the CONI General Secretary, Roberto Fabbricini, also in attendance was the Deputy Secretary, Carlo Mornati; the President of CONI Services, Franco Chimenti; several federal presidents and numerous personalities at the press conference, including the President of the Court of Auditors, Pasquale Squitieri, Gianni Letta; the Undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Monsignor Melchor Sanchez; the Rector of the Foro Italico University, Fabio Pigozzi; the President of FITAV (The Italian Skeet Shooting Federation) and Senator, Luciano Rossi; the Senator Raffaele Ranucci; the former Undersecretary of State for Sport, Rocco Crimi and the Acting Deputy Chairman of the Constitutional Court, Luigi Mazzella.

CONI President, Giovanni Malagò, opened the meeting pointing out the importance of the subject and the fundamental role played by sport. “I congratulate Mario Pescante, IOC ambassador within the UN. We are the only sector where everyone agrees, because sport is a tool that brings people together beyond any barrier. There is a thread that binds us. It is the story that teaches us how to overcome so many stories of diversity. With a meaning which is more beautiful than the medals. We have to promote these subjects, keep them alive. Bach is doing well entrusting this task to Pescante and we are doing well in supporting it. All countries must be greater than what is happening in the world. We have to show how sport goes far beyond its mission. We must be one family, even if we are rivals on the field. A final farewell to the French athletes disappeared in the tragedy in Argentina”.

Mario Pescante developed the subject with a large series of cases called upon to enhance the content of the message. “We are experiencing a period of tormented coexistence in many parts of the world. In this context, talking about peace seems to be an absurd exercise but the UN and the IOC, cooperating to ensure the United Nations Assembly, on the eve of Rio 2016, adopts the Olympic Truce, through the sharing of the majority of countries. It is a privilege to start the path that will lead us to the Games tailor made for CONI, due to the prestige of our Olympic Committee in the world, thanks to the link of the Country with Christianity and due to the values it represents. I remember a letter that an Iraqi journalist, Rafid, sent me after the first Iraqi victory in the Asian Cup by Iraq, calling to emphasize the importance of sport as a source of development of an ideal born in 776 BC, when the sacred truce was declared in the first Olympic Games. That universal ideal is called peace. Today we only hear of clashes and not much about dialogue. No one should fear the sound of the word "peace". The world of sport is not afraid to do it, it never has been. The UN has fought to return to the Olympic truce, since the 1992 Barcelona Games. The official motto is not so much "Faster, higher, stronger”, as “the important thing is to participate", as it has a greater content. Baron De Coubertin said it, by wanting to gather women and men of all ethnic, political and religious beliefs, everyone is included, indiscriminately, in helping to build a world that includes and does not divide. The United Nations has urged the IOC, as a permanent observer within the Assembly, to raise awareness about the importance of the Olympic truce. The IOC will commit to doing this even before Rio. It is a symbolic message, a call that goes to the heart of young people from every continent, who speak the same universal language. People are already separated by borders but the geographical barriers are not the ones doing the separating, the dividing factors are ethnic discrimination, political rivalries and religious factionalism. Sport is a great bridge that connects people together. The Paralympics are another opportunity to show what the sporting world is capable of, what it represents. On the field they are opponents, but later on they are friends for life. There are many cases that prove this. I would like to mention the case of Eugenio Monti, the two-man bobsleigh pilot, who at the 1964 Innsbruck Games handed over to the English team (at that point in second position) the bolt to fix their vehicle and then win the race. Monti won the bronze but the IOC awarded him the Pierre De Coubertin Fair Play Award due to his gesture of sportsmanship. There are many other incredible stories, like those showing how sport can bring people together beyond diversity: I'm thinking of the shooting sport podium at the Beijing Games in 2008, with the Russian and Georgian athletes who embraced to celebrate. They were two mothers, who found out that the day before an armed conflict had broken out between their countries. They asked to live in a more peaceful world and they demonstrated it in that world. I'm thinking about how cricket has inaugurated the resumption of diplomacy between India and Pakistan or how sport has brought Israel and Palestine closer. Our movement has always preceded the political relations of cooperation between countries. Because the world behind the Olympic flag is one single family”.

Manuela Di Centa, Mauro Checcoli, Luca Pancalli, Novella Calligaris, Daniele Masala and Nicola Pietrangeli have remembered their experiences in the Olympic world, emphasizing the importance of sport as a synonym for friendship and union. The Olympic Village, the rules and the universal values of the Games as proof of diversity which becomes a resource and a reason for sharing. The importance of a strong message has always been renewed by CONI, a message that is never dull and always modern. A message that will accompany us up to the Rio Olympic Games in 2016.

The new Club House is inaugurated at the Giulio Onesti Centre

The Club House at the Giulio Onesti Olympic Training Centre in Rome was inaugurated today. It is a new space designed for athletes and guests at the Centre and will be used for meetings, socialising and relaxation.
The building houses a lounge and bar, a new fully equipped gym with the latest machinery [Technogym], designed according to the specific needs of the Italian Rugby Team and can be used by other national teams. It also has another area equipped with a room for training and meetings.

The inauguration was attended by CONI President, Giovanni Malagò, together with Secretary General, Roberto Fabbricini and Deputy Secretary General, Carlo Mornati. The event was also attended by federal managers and athletes from the national team who are currently guests at the Olympic Training Centre (Rugby, Female Hockey, Weightlifting, Taekwondo, Gymnastics, Swimming and Fencing) in addition to Club Italia of men's volleyball. The Club house is equipped with Wifi coverage, consoles for video games and television screens, as well as games available for guests and athletes. Security will be guaranteed by means of a video surveillance system of the whole area. The inauguration marks an important date in the development process of the Olympic Training Centres, strategically designed by CONI as a special place for the meeting of expertise and excellence in sporting and technical fields. The opening of the club house is part of the Italia Olympic Team project, the new CONI initiative for the promotion of the Italian Olympic team.

Press Release

In connection to the bid made by the city of Rome to host the Olympic and Paralympic Games of 2024, CONI has engaged Coni Services to perform the typical functions of the Organizing Committee designed to support this project after announcing – as is known – the designation of the President, Luca di Montezemolo, and the Vice-President, Luca Pancalli; the latter will also manage the relationships with Roma Capitale and the Paralympic Games organization.

As part of these activities, the designated "General Coordinator" Claudia Bugno will avail herself of the collaboration of Simone Perillo as International Relations and Planning Manager.

The offices of the Bid Committee will be located inside the Park of the Foro Italico.

National Board, a minute of silence for the three French athletes who died in Argentina. Malagò: "A real tragedy"

Today, the National Board opened its work by observing a minute of silence in memory of the three French athletes, the swimmer and Olympic champion Camille Muffat, the sailor Florence Arthoud and the boxer Alexis Vastine (bronze medal in Beijing 2008), who died last night in a plane crash in Argentina.

Before the meeting, President Malagò contacted the President of the French Olympic Committee, Denis Masseglia, and expressed his deep sorrow for the tragedy that struck France, expressing the solidarity of the Italian sports movement to the French sporting world. President Malago has described the incident as “a real tragedy”.

Baku 2015 marks 100 days to go by unveiling European Games medal design

Baku 2015 European Games today marked the start of the 100 Days To Go countdown by revealing the design of medals for the inaugural event, to be held on 12 – 28 June this year.

Baku 2015 also announced that tickets for children and teenagers under 16 will be free of charge at most competition events, while adult admission will be affordably priced. The new-look Baku 2015 website was also launched.

The gold, silver and bronze medals revealed today feature unique iconography developed in line with the decorative Baku 2015 branding. The design, which features the Baku 2015 logo at its centre, is a metaphor for the dynamic, beautiful and culturally-rich host city, while the reverse face features the European Olympic Committees emblem and word mark.

The medal design was created by renowned jeweller Adamas, which also produced the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games medals, in collaboration with Azerbaijani artist Nargiz Huseynova. They will be manufactured locally by Azersouvenir.

100 days to the first European Games

The countdown starts from one hundred, the number of days separating us from the beginning of the first edition of the European Games, which will be held in Baku from June 12th to 28th. Born during the 41st COE Assembly held at the Foro Italico in December 2012, the sporting event will greet over 6000 athletes representing 50 European Olympic Committees in the 17 days of competition.

The Games will feature twenty disciplines, including 16 Olympic disciplines, and passes to the Olympic Games of Rio 2016 will be awarded for 12 of them (Athletics, Cycling, Judo, Wrestling, Swimming, Boxing, Taekwondo, Table Tennis, Triathlon, Volleyball, Shooting, Archery).

Magnetic Risonance Imaging donated to the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine thanks to Fondazione Roma

The President of CONI, Giovanni Malagò, and the President of Fondazione Roma, Prof. Emmanuele Francesco Maria Emanuele, signed this morning an agreement to donate a magnetic resonance imaging device to the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine. The press conference for the initiative was also attended by the Secretary General of CONI, Roberto Fabbricini, the Deputy Secretary General, Carlo Mornati, the CEO of Coni Servizi, Alberto Miglietta, the Medical Director of the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine, Antonio Spataro, the Director General of Fondazione Roma, Franco Parasassi and the Head of institutional activities of Fondazione Roma, Serena Ghisalberti.

The President of CONI Giovanni Malagò signed the agreement while proudly saying: "It's a historic moment. This partnership is invaluable, consistent with what we try to do with all our stakeholders. The foundation is good, focused on social investments, and also joined the world of sport to pursue this goal. This donation really makes the Institute of Medicine independent: we want to be open to all excellences, also through special conventions and agreements. We are honored by this agreement".

The President of Fondazione Roma, Emmanuele Francesco Maria Emanuele, stressed the concepts expressed by Malagò. "I'm very happy with this successful partnership. In recent years, no one has achieved results as good as our foundation. Our goal is to increase the assets and help activities in the fields of health, culture and society, even if we find it hard to intervene with donations. It seems paradoxical, but we live in these situations. However, CONI is led by an entrepreneur who understands these dynamics well, so everything was easy with them. I would like to thank President Malagò and Professor Spataro for their professionalism and dedication. We are proud to help the Institute of Sports Medicine purchase a piece of equipment that is an essential part of diagnostic imaging. The added value of this initiative is the fact that this machine will not be used only for athletes of various national teams, but for the entire population. This aspect highlights, once again, the social commitment of Fondazione Roma." They helped the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine with a donation of €700,000. Coni Servizi has already obtained the necessary permits to accommodate the unit in the Institute.