By Sylvia Telge
Warm welcome in the Vorsfeld town hall: Günter Lach (left) and Karl Haberstumpf with Olympic judoka Giovanna Scoccimarro. Photo: Britta Schulze
Vorsfelde. This has never happened before in the Vorsfeld town hall: On Saturday, the local council not only invited an Olympic participant, but even one who won a bronze medal in the competitions: Judoka Giovanna Scoccimarro from MTV Vorsfelde.
It goes without saying that there was great applause when the young sportswoman entered the town hall with her family. She was visibly happy about the warm welcome – but so was the mayor of the town, Günter Lach. He recalled that Giovanna Scoccimarro started at MTV in the judo division at the age of seven and has been loyal to the club ever since. “Other clubs must have dredged it,” Lach assumed.
Giovanna Scoccimarro has always dreamed of participating in the Olympic Games once. The dream has now come true in Tokyo. Not only that. The 23-year-old even won the bronze medal in the mixed category. That she has won it – she has now realized that. “It wasn’t like that after the competition,” said the young woman.
She also brought the medal to the reception in the Vorsfeld town hall. “It’s pretty heavy,” Lach stated as he held the precious metal in his hand. Giovanna Scoccimarro has now won the medal. The annoyance that she “only” came fifth in the individual ranking is not completely gone. But it shouldn’t have been her last Olympic Games, she promises. Günter Lach is still hoping for “three to four”. Giovanna Scoccimarro is a little more cautious. It set itself the limit in 2028. Before that, however, she must of course create the qualifications. At the future games, she might even bring something from Vorsfelde with her: the black and green local flag that was in the bouquet that the local council presented at the reception on Saturday.
That might make the boar town even more famous. Thanks to Giovanna Scoccimarro’s appearance in Tokyo, she is already on many lips around the world, said the mayor. A Vorsfelde flag might top that.
Günter Lach also praised the commitment of MTV Vorsfelde at the reception. The club is not only active in popular and health sports, but also provides excellent support for top athletes. Giovanna Scoccimarro is the best example of this. Günter Lach hopes that the young woman will remain loyal to her hometown club for a very long time, even though she now works in Hanover.
One thing had irritated him on Giovanna Scoccimarro’s trip to Tokyo: The athlete had compared the Olympic Village with Wolfsburg. The athlete explained why at the reception: During shift times the VW city is full, after that it is pretty empty. It was the same in the Olympic Village. After the athletes were picked up for the competitions, the accommodations resembled “a ghost town”.
Wolfsburger Allgemeine, page 14, August 16, 2021
