This is an examination of Andrea Benatti, Italian athletics blogger since 2007, with thousands of articles on different websites and specialized magazines.
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I was reflecting with a friend in the past hours on the reasons for the incredible
success of Italian athletics. Since we must also be able to give a perspective,
it is also right to question the reasons that led a movement to produce such an
elite of athletes who fight for the best places in the European and world, when
we Italians, traditionally, we had never had this range of options so vast and
above all (unlike the past golden periods) with this continuous turnover.
Think of Mattia Furlani, absolute phenomenon, who in fact has not yet started his career
but behind him is already a prodigy like Daniele Inzoli. Lorenzo Simonelli has
already in the wake of the rampant Escalona, the women’s sprint will bring us
in the coming years the super-prodigy Kelly Doualla and Alessia Succo. Just to
name four.
It would be necessary to make a sociological analysis to understand the explosion of the
athletic phenomenon in Italy, which has usually always been characterized by
impromptu samples embedded in a fabric of medium-level athletes who rarely
reached the international summits. Premising that it will be almost impossible
to win 5 gold also in Paris (hoping to be denied) I want to be clear: often the
various federations that occur (in the various sports, with some exceptions)
proselytizing successes that have little to do with their management activity
(otherwise I would be shown the documents of these structural interventions
that would involve an investment of several million euros, that is the cost
that such a thing would require at a capillary level, mica sure with circulars
or with the kilometric reimbursements...) but depend on entirely external and
macrosocial factors.
That said, the task of a Federation, in my opinion, is to maximize the resources available that for the Italian Athletics Federation are not, and have never been, few referred to the fabric of world athletics. That’s the point. Now you can’t say that you can’t maximize results
right now.
Two or three years ago I took the trouble to check the budgets of the various national
athletics federations (the largest and most successful) to find that FIDAL was
second only to USATF (the American Athletics Federation) with its 22 or 23
million euros of turnover then. The USATF was around 40 million euros then.
But in reality, the annual direct investment in Italian athletics is at least double, and probably higher than that of the USATF. Why? For the simple observation that 99% of elite Italian athletes are part of military sports groups. Among athletes, staff, executives and all the military hierarchies necessary for the management of sports groups, I think
that about 350 people (in default). If you multiply an average salary of about
1,800/1900 euros (to which to add the related deductions) for all the people involved
on the 13 months, and add the assets (maintenance and management of sports
centers, travel, hotels, various allowances, including escorts)you will see how
the annual cost of Italian elite athletics (directly and indirectly financed by
the State) would probably double and reach (and perhaps exceed) that of the
USATF.
From this account we obviously do not count personal sponsors: in the States it is
obvious that the stars have contracts with brands that go in some cases (very
few, I think, no more than 5) even in figures with 6 zeros, such as Sha'Carri,
Kerley and Lyles.
What I mean is that the intrinsic value of Italian athletics has always been very high, indeed, very high, since sports groups have existed since time immemorial. Otherwise said, the investment on the individual athlete by the relevant bodies (free sponsors), compared to
virtually all federations around the world, is probably the highest.
This, intuitively, should have kept us in the top European positions since ever, while we spent a long winter (sportily speaking) for over two decades since the beginning of the century. For the mere fact of denouncing the inadequacy and jamming of the entire system to the available resources we have taken, on the side, also a lawsuit (obviously
filed).
So what has happened since Tokyo 2021 that has placed us in a position more in keeping with the value of investments?
I explain it with several factors:
1) The Covid period hit the world sports world like a tsunami. Italy has withstood the shock best of all because basically all Olympic sports are held up by military sports groups, that is, even in lockdown periods, athletes have always received their salary, that is,
their livelihood. On a global level, however, we have read terrible stories of
athletes who had to make drastic choices, often leaving the sport momentarily
or permanently, also reducing personal investments on their preparation. Not
only athletics, so, but many Blue Olympic sports, have found their revival
after the Covid because they have simply become much more competitive globally
in terms of investment in the individual athlete than the rest of the world
that does not have a state system of support for sport as widespread as the
Italian.
2) The thirty-year "technical" tare. Secondly, there is no doubt that a system with very
high investment potential for athletes such as Italian athletics, had
"deep blocks" that did not allow it to evolve and reach the minimum
levels of such investments. Otherwise, the overall paucity of the movement that
lasted decades is not explained. Here I see a problem of technical knowledge
that had become intoxicated over the years, almost always become dogmatic,
lacking scientific evidence that were not studies of 30 years before that had
not been then more updated or evolved. From the "center" there has
been no more, and for lustres and lusters, no propulsive thrust on the
innovation of coaching, no academic, scientific push, which updated methods,
training practices and everything around them... and at the expense of hundreds
of young athletes, promising, phenomenal, sacrificed to a religion and its
schismatic sects.
3) The socials despite the undeniable thousand negative aspects, have had several positive for the sport, or put at the disposal of more, knowledge that before were accused of blasphemy and that today are considered less than normal. The training techniques have finally evolved, the historical "block" has been removed, the highest quality
"human material" has arrived, and a different path has finally begun.
Remember that not all athletes get to the top, not all phenomena become
champions, but it is always a calculation of possibilities. Now that percentage
has risen exponentially: that is, we will continue to see samples that
disappear (and there is not only the sporting aspect, but everyday life), but
their number has significantly decreased. Once the dogmatists burned on the
altar of their beliefs dozens of athletes without anyone had ever had the
courage to stop them.
4) The system of the acquaintances, from vertical, of FIDAL (almost obliged, since the push had been exhausted by decades), has become more horizontal and more open to the innovations (not always, some monolith is still standing) and thanks to this finally from a
purely statistical or market point, has differentiated the portfolio. Instead
of just one approach, there have been many and many of them have been
successful. From here a continuous remodulation that has perfected the
coaching: several Italian coaches have international success and are not afraid
to share their experiences and especially their knowledge. And luckily a market
was born, finally the embryos of a very small professionalization of the role
began to glimpse. Today the role of the Federation appears purely
organizational general, rather than directional. It appears more of support,
sharing, than of technical address. That is, many athletes have personal staff
that go into decision making much more than the Federation. The DT La Torre is
certainly an excellent organizer, and the technical part that was once conditio
sine qua non connected to the role, appears (from outside) almost completely
sacrificed. I don’t think that if a Rana Reider says that Jacobs has to compete
in three locations defined by him, the DT opposes, or has all the power of the
DT of the 80s and 90s to change its plans. It’s a different role, adapted to
the horizontal knowledge situation.
Another need that exploded with covid and its harmful consequences, was definitely the
need for psychological support to the growth of the athlete. Listening to many
elite Italian athletes, it was clear that their words were often the result of
a confrontation with professionals in the sector. Someone, see Zaynab Dosso,
speaks of it serenely and freely, as a normal thing of his success. Marcell
Jacobs' relationship with his mental coach is history. The same attitude of
most, especially of those who went wrong, no longer has that remissive
connotation of a time. It’s something like, "I’m not in, I had to do
better and I will".
5) Another thing, but not least: there is no doubt that Italian society has changed in recent years, I am convinced, for the better, at least as regards the general genetic heritage. Take second or even third generation Italian foreign boys: 14 athletes of the 24 medals won
came from them or from children of an Italian parent with a parent of foreign
origin. Only a wide-spectrum survey would be able to intercept crucial aspects
regarding the motivations that push these guys to choose athletics. Obviously the
result will always be connected to double thread from the location where these
guys are, from the structures and especially from the people able to welcome
them and start athletics.
There is no first thing without the second, of course, but how can we deny that part of the current success is also the result of the enrichment of migratory phenomena? To conclude, it is certain that what happened in Rome in the last week at Italian athletics is truly unique. But the feeling is that it is the result of a much more stable and lasting process than
anything that has ever happened in the past in this sport.