Already 302 Azzurri qualified for the Tokyo Games: 156 men, 146 women, 28 different disciplines with 71 individual passes. The IOC has opened its doors to young and emerging sports (climbing, karate, skateboarding and surfing) and has reopened its doors to baseball and softball. The softball blues will be at the Olympics, the skateboard has qualified three blues, as well as climbing, karate four. Only surfing was excluded, he will try again in Paris 2024. It is the eighth time that Italy exceeds 300: Athens 2004 (367), Sydney 2000 (361), Atlanta 1996 (347), Beijing 2008 (340) , Barcelona 1992 (318), Rio 2016 (314) and Los Angeles 1984 (312). Rio’s primacy will be beaten: they still expect to be qualified in athletics, 3×3 women’s basketball, boxing, golf and tennis (but according to the ranking there is a risk that there is not even a girl while the boys make havoc), basketball men will have to do the feat in Belgrade against Serbia. But 330 had been exceeded in the past only when there were eight teams at the start: for now there are four as in Rio 2016 (men’s and women’s volleyball, Settebello, softball that took the place of Setterosa).
However, in such a terrible moment also for sport Italy has shown a great resistance, the work of the Federations, of Giovanni Malagò and of the head of the Olympic preparation, Carlo Mornati, is paying off. The number 1 of Coni, perhaps in a superstitious way, wished for an extra medal compared to Rio (8 gold, 12 silver, 8 bronze). According to the Nielsen Gracenote projection, Italy could reach 33 medals (8 gold, 10 silver and 15 bronze). With 33 he would finish tenth in the world top ten. Difficult to make predictions after a complex year, with few races in some disciplines. There will be surprises for sure. The medals, it is true, are counted but they are also weighed: Malagò hopes for a gold also from Chamizo in the fight, from volleyball (male or female, perhaps more female), from Paltrinieri in open water, from athletics that does not climb the step higher than the podium since 2013 (Athens Games, Schwazer in the march: this time the Palmisano could win again in the march). Swimming and fencing will not betray, the same will be the shooting of president Luciano Rossi, positive surprises could also come from taekwondo with Vito Dell’Aquila (president Angelo Cito has done a great job in recent years), from judo, maybe from new entry climbing. We play it on 28 disciplines.
They will be different Olympics, very spartan: the blue delegation is vaccinated, in a country, Japan, where they have historically been hostile to vaccines. A paradox. Italy is ready to play its part from 23 July: medals from 33 sports, 50 disciplines and 339 events are up for grabs. Luckily, in extremis, we saved the flag and anthem: on June 23 ceremony at Colle by President Mattarella, the Italian flag-bearers are Jessica Rossi and Elia Viviani, the first time for shooting and cycling. The count down has begun.
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