Carlo Mornati new Secretary General of Italian National Olympic Committee
- CONI
Carlo Mornati is the new Secretary General of the Italian National Olympic Committee. He takes the place of Roberto Fabbricini. Born in Lecco on 16 March, 1972, he is a Law graduate from the Sacro Cuore Catholic University of Milan with a degree in international studies (1998), attended a course in Australian Industrial Relations at the University of Technology of Sydney (1998) and has a 2nd level Master's degree in Sports Law and Economics (2007).
Between 2005 and 2009 he was a member of the National Executive of the CONI in athletes' quota and since 2009 has worked at the Olympics Preparation Office.
Since 2013 he has been Deputy to the Secretary General of the Organization and responsible for Olympic Preparation activities and all General Secretariat Activities.
He is currently a member of the Executive Management Committee and of the Steering Committee of the Cortina Foundation 2021.
He was Head of Mission of the Italian Olympic Team in Sochi 2014, Rio de Janeiro 2016 and PyeongChang 2018.
During his career as an athlete, he took part in four Olympic Games, winning the silver medal in Sydney 2000 in the coxless 4 rowing competition, and in two World Championships where he reached the podium six more times, taking 3 silver and 3 bronze medals.
Tokyo 2020 Unveils Olympic & Paralympic Mascots
- OLYMPIC GAMES
The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020) today unveiled their official Olympic and Paralympic mascots, following an evaluation of three shortlisted design sets by elementary schoolchildren across Japan and at Japanese schools overseas. Design Set A secured the largest number of classroom votes and will accordingly serve as the official mascots of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020.
205,755 classes at 16,769 schools took part in the election, with the winning Design Set A receiving 109,041 votes. Design Set B attracted 61,423 votes and Design Set C received 35,291. The results were announced in front of around 600 children at Hoyonomori Gakuen School in Tokyo, one of the schools which participated in the voting process. The ceremony was live-streamed in order to allow children all over the country to share the moment and discover the winner in real time. Public viewings were also organised in several schools.
In December 2017, Tokyo 2020 published a shortlist of three mascot design sets, each containing an Olympic and a Paralympic mascot, following a review of 2,042 entries submitted by the public during a nationwide competition. Elementary school classes across the country and in Japanese schools overseas were then invited to evaluate the shortlisted designs, with each class asked to cast a single vote in favour of one of the sets.
The mascot voting process was part of Tokyo 2020's nationwide educational programme called “Yoi Don!” (“Get Set”), which brings the Olympic and Paralympic Games into schools across Japan and allows students to actively participate in educational initiatives linked to the Games. By encouraging discussion of the mascots in classes, the voting process helped children learn about the values of the Olympic and Paralympic Movements.
Commented Ryohei Miyata, Mascot Selection Panel Chairperson, “The Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games finally have their mascots. This means a lot, especially in Japan. I cannot wait to see these two characters coming to life in the stadiums, on the streets and on TV. The children selected two mascots that embody both ancient tradition and new innovation. I believe this is an excellent choice since Tokyo 2020's branding vision is “innovation from harmony”, which implies that innovation will occur when the old and the new of Tokyo and Japan come together.”
The Mascot Selection Panel will now decide names for the winning mascots, which will make their official debut in July or August 2018.
The designer of the winning mascots is Ryo Taniguchi. Born in 1974, Taniguchi lives in Fukuoka, in southern Japan. He graduated as an art major from Cabrillo College in California, in the United States, and is currently active as a character designer/illustrator. His work has been featured by companies and at exhibitions in Japan.
Taniguchi and the two runners-up – Kana Yano (Design Set B) and Sanae Akimoto (Design Set C) – attended the ceremony, with each receiving an award.
The PyeongChang Games Have Come to an End, Italy says goodbye with Kostner as flag-bearer
- ROAD TO BEIJING 2022
The XXIII Olympic Winter Games ended as they began, under the banner of peace. The next appointment is in four years and will still be held in Asia with the Olympic flame passing to Beijing, China, which will return to enjoy the five-circled dream after having organised the summer edition.
In the closing ceremony of PyeongChang 2018 held this evening at the Olympic Stadium, the IOC President Thomas Bach entrusted the Olympic flag to Jining Chen, mayor of Beijing, which will host the 2022 games. The Chinese director Zhang Yimou, who already directed the Beijing 2008 ceremonies, offered a preview of the Olympic Games to come. Postcards from China, along with the message: "We’ll see you in Beijing".
This evening, however, it is time to say goodbye to the Games that just ended. The Italians are in fifth place for number of medals received in the winter games’ all-time ranking (and in fourth place if you don’t consider its 'home' games in Turin, 2006) and demonstrate the women's prowess in the Olympics, where six of the ten Italian medals were won by women and the three gold metals carry the smiles of Arianna Fontana (short track), Michela Moioli (snowboard) and Sofia Goggia (alpine skiing).
Women such as Carolina Kostner (photo Ferraro-Pagliaricci GMT) were chosen to parade this evening under the eyes of the Mission Director and Deputy Secretary General of CONI Carlo Mornati and by the Italian Ambassador in Korea, Marco Della Seta, with the Italian flag that the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella delivered to Arianna Fontana at the Quirinale.
A proper recognition of the career of the Olympic bronze-medal skater in Sochi 2014, who had marched with the Italian flag in Turin in 2006, at a very young age.
Twelve years later, Carolina still represented Italy and retraced her footsteps, this time in the opposite direction as a Short Track Olympic Champion and flag-bearer in the closing ceremony of the Russian games.
The Italian champion entered the stadium between Iran and Israel (according to the Korean alphabet) around 20:15, forming a coloured circle with the other 90 flag-bearers (the complete list can be found here), around which the protagonists of the games marched: the athletes. The Italian team entered just before 20:30, led by Arianna Fontana with three medals around her neck, carried triumphantly by the skaters Luca Lanotte and Ondrej Hotarek, as her victories are the victories of a team and of an entire country.
Just like the opening ceremony of 9 February, the show tonight continued to recount the traditions and innovations of the peninsula and spoke of peace, once again with the two Koreas parading together last, alternating their flags with those of a united Korea.
Every edition of the games remains immortalised in certain images which become part of history. Those of PyeongChang 2018 can be seen in the handshake between the President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, and Kim Yojong, sister of the North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, in the excitement of the two countries’ athletes while on the women's hockey field and the two parades, under a single flag.
Tonight's ceremony placed a definitive seal on the games: different elements which, together, became harmony and united the world. "The New Wave" (title of the closing ceremony): a new wave that overcomes any obstacle, a message conveyed by sports that pushes beyond every barrier.
Legendary Fontana! Bronze medal in the 1000, 10th podium for Italy. The second best Italian athlete ever at the Winter Olympics in terms of medals won
- SHORT TRACK
Her sharp blades have made history again. Another gem that embellishes an infinite collection: this was an unbeatable Fontana. The Italian flag bearer, who had already taken the gold medal in the 500-metre race and the silver medal in the relay, bagged a bronze in the 1000 metres short track event, the only distance in which she had still not won an Olympic medal. It was her who took Italy into double digits: this was in fact the tenth Italian medal at PyeongChang2018 and the eighth for our flag bearer (the third in Korea) who thus climbed onto the second step of the Italian podium of all time in the winter Games - just behind Stefania Belmondo (first with 10 medals) - and onto the fifth overall, together with Giovanna Trillini, in the Italian summer and winter all-time Olympic ratings. An incredible champion, exceptional in her uniqueness, able to take even the absolute record of the most winning athlete of the short track world; one shared with Apolo Antonio Ohio (USA) and Viktor An (Korea and Russia).
She is the lady of ice that breaks record after record, thanks to an enviable balancing act and technical gestures which exalts explosiveness and harmony, rapidity and intelligence. Arianna managed the 1000 event with surgical wisdom and glacial concentration, easily passing the quarter finals and achieving a new personal record (1'29 "156) in the semi-finals. In the final, she gave us a show of her outstanding ability, turning experience and a clever interpretation of the race into weapons to neutralize dangers: she crossed the line behind the Dutch athlete, Schulting and the Canadian, Boutin, without being sucked into the collision course of the two Koreans.
Stratospheric Sofia Goggia: historic gold in the downhill, ninth Italian medal at the Games
- ALPINE SKIING
Women’s alpine skiing bows to super Sofia, who becomes the first Italian Olympic jet-propelled woman, transforming a dream into shining gold. Goggia won the downhill race at the Olympic Games in PyeongChang, giving Italy its ninth medal and thus bettering the number of medals bagged in Sochi 2014. This was Italy’s third gold medal in these Games. A fantastic run, a perfect mix of technique, power and speed that brought the most credited rivals to their knees thanks to an impressive progression that took her across the finish line in 1'39"22. Behind her came the Norwegian, Ragnhild Mowinckel (+0.09) and her US friend and rival, Lindsey Vonn (+0.47).
Sofia created an extraordinary victory for herself by giving voice to her ability to exorcise risks without ever losing control, transforming emotions into a whirlwind of fierce determination and unrivalled ambition - well aware of her ability and strength. The gold smiles like her, mirrored in the Italian flag, which once again hovers high above the others. She is the fastest skier of the white circus. Sixteen years after Daniela Ceccarelli (1st in the SuperG at Salt Lake 2002) and eight years after Giuliano Razzoli (1st in the Slalom at Vancouver 2010), Italian alpine skiing is back on the highest step of the Olympic podium: Sofia leaves a mark on history, becoming the first Italian skier to win the downhill race at the Games. The special taste of a unique triumph.
The medley relay takes the bronze medal. Eighth Italian medal, just like in Sochi 2014
- BIATHLON
Thanks to the biathlon, Italy bagged its eighth medal at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Games. And once again it went to Dominik Windisch, the last participant of the medley relay that gave Italy its bronze medal (in 1h09'01"2), behind France (4 polygon errors, in 1h08'34"3) and Norway (12 errors, in 1h08'55"2). The protagonists at the Alpensia Biathlon Centre were Lisa Vittozzi (0 polygon errors), Dorothea Wierer (3 errors), Lukas Hofer (1) and the already mentioned Windisch (2) who won the sprint against Germany which, however, appealed against an alleged fault of the Italian biathlete. After more than 35 minutes, the judges' decision went in favour of the Italian: and bronze it was!
And so, after the silver medal won by the women's relay team in the short track event, it was another team effort which lit up the Korean night of the Italia Team (photo: Ferraro GMT).
With this bronze medal, the Italian squad equalled the number of medals won in Sochi 2014 (2 silvers and 6 bronzes), but PyeongChang2018, with 2 gold medals, 2 silver medals and 4 bronze medals, betters the Russian Olympics in terms of medal value and so these sixth Winter Games are the richest in terms of medals in the history of Italian sport, with five days still to go until the closing ceremony.
Silver for the women’s relay. Seventh Italian Olympic medal
- SHORT TRACK
The women's short track relay did not let us down: the girls took the silver and gave Italy its seventh Olympic medal at the PyeongChang2018 Games. The team made up of Arianna Fontana, Cecilia Maffei, Lucia Peretti and Martina Valcepina, closed in third place (4'15"901) in the hard-fought 3000-metre final, won by Korea, with the simultaneous disqualification of China and Canada and with the bronze going to the Netherlands, winner of the B Final with a great world record (4'03"071).
This is the second podium for Italy in this sport after the gold taken in the 500 metres by flag bearer Arianna Fontana, who in her career has made the Olympic podium seven times (the third time in the relay after Turin 2006 - when thanks to the team race, she became the youngest Italian medal winner ever at the Winter Games - and at Sochi 2014). Another page of her extraordinary Olympic fairy tale becomes legend - as a several-times medal winner on the world short track scene and as champion athlete, on the podium for 4 consecutive winter Games. She is now one of the most outstanding athletes of all time.
Federica Brignone wins the bronze in the giant slalom, Bassino comes 5th, Moelgg 8th and Goggia 11th
- ALPINE SKIING
Bronze 10000m medal for Nicola Tumolero. 5th Italian medal at the Olympics
- SPEED SKATING
First gold for Italy thanks to a monumental Arianna Fontana. The Olympic legend triumphs in the 500 metres
- SHORT TRACK
The Olympic rings have more than left their mark on her heart. They are the distinctive and ineffaceable token of her wonderful and successful story. Italian short track queen, Arianna Fontana won gold in the 500 metres at Gangneung Ice Arena, giving Italy its second medal at PyeongChang2018 and climbing onto the Olympic podium for the fourth consecutive time. From Turin 2006 (mixed bronze) and Vancouver (bronze), to Sochi (two bronze and one silver) and now South Korea, she is up there with the Olympic greats. This time, the most prized medal was placed around her neck, the one she was yet to win: Italy returned to the highest step of the podium after a dormant 8 years (the last win being Vancouver 2010 with Giuliano Razzoli in the slalom).
Flagbearer, the youngest ever Italian winter medalwinner, the first Ice Sports Olympian, the icon of a movement revolving around her talent, this charming champion with her special smile cuts no corners on the track. Tonight, first she dominated the quarter finals, winning her heat; then she was the protagonist in a wild semi-final where she bested her personal record (42"635 against her time of 42"829 in Salt Lake City in November 2016), losing out only to Korean Choi, capable of reaching the Olympic record (42"422). Then came the final, full of adrenaline and heightened emotions. The stuff of pure, monumental champions. Fearless, Arianna led from the word go, again improving her PB (42"569). It is a tale to be told: right behind her were Dutch van Kerkhof and Canadian Boutin, home athlete Choi having been disqualified. An Italian party, the first in Korea. It wears the face of the flagbearer: Arianna, a star - green, white and red - turned legend.
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