Italian
Giacomo Perini has finally received the bronze medal won at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games and then revoked due to disqualification
ROME – During the National Council of the Italian Paralympic Committee, held yesterday morning at the CONI Honor Hall, the blue Giacomo Perini received the bronze medal won and then stripped from him at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games in rowing.
A Kafkaesque story at times. A year and a half of appeals to regain what he had justly earned in the water. The protagonist is the champion of paralympic rowing Giacomo Perini. At Paris 2024, the blue athlete had won a well-deserved bronze in the men’s PR1 single, only to be disqualified for the presence of a smartphone on board the boat, which was forgotten in a technical bag.
Clearly a simple formal oversight that had not affected the athletic performance in any way, but still prohibited by the regulations. From there, a complex and lengthy legal process began until the firmness of the CIP, the Italian Rowing Federation, and the appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned the initial outcome.
It was this last body that determined that the penalty of disqualification was disproportionate, officially restoring the third place achieved in the competition.
Thus, the Roman athlete was finally able to receive the long-awaited medal from the President of the Italian Paralympic Committee Marco Giunio De Sanctis, in the presence of the new President of the FIC Rossano Galtarossa and representatives of the Sports Group of the Fiamme Gialle, of which Perini is a part.
The statements
These are the words of Giacomo Perini: “After more than a year, the emotion of holding the medal in my hands is immense because I hoped for it until the last moment. I hope this bronze can represent not only my personal victory but also a motivation to invest in and support adaptive rowing even more. The team is growing and has a strong desire to win and return to the podium.
I want to dedicate this medal to my family, who are my first sponsors and have always believed in me. For a person with a disability, the medal is just the tip of the iceberg; the most important thing is the opportunity to take life back into one’s own hands, to understand one’s disability, and to see it not as a limit but as an opportunity.”
The comment from the President of the CIP Marco Giunio De Sanctis: “A recognition that comes from afar and is not just formal but celebrates the value of a performance achieved correctly on the field. A decision of extraordinary importance that restores justice to Giacomo Perini and the entire Italian Paralympic movement. Kudos also to the previous governance that pursued an appeal that has now been won and allows us to celebrate a well-deserved bronze.”
Photo Credits: comitatoparalimpico.it
