Good evening everyone. 

Thank you for your welcome, thank you for your enthusiasm. In truth, this is quite undeserved; I must confess that I’ve always been rather poor at all roller sports. If someone would like to give me a hand to stop my 7-year-old daughter from laughing at me, I would be very grateful. That aside, however, I believe that being here is a great opportunity and that this event is a great opportunity. So, as has already been said several times, I would like to thank President Marsilio, President Aracu, the Mayor of Montesilvano and all the other mayors present.

There are three reasons why I consider this event to be so important. The first: this nation’s main problem is that it doesn’t believe in itself enough. We always tend to focus on the negative rather than the positive things we are able to do. We’re always good at saying we’re not up to the task, but then, when put to the test, we always are. It is sometimes said that this nation is apparently not up to hosting major events. Well, not only is this nation up to hosting major sporting events, even its smallest cities and regions, any of Italy’s regions, are perfectly capable of astounding those coming here from other parts of the world to attend a major sporting event: this is precisely the promise we must make to ourselves.

I am here to say, President Aracu, President Marsilio, that my being here shows that the Government and all of Italy’s economic system are focused on this event. I always think about what it means for someone from the other side of the world to know that the world championship is being held in Italy. I think about the great level of expectation there is because, look, I got back from Japan at 3 o’ clock this morning, I travel a lot around Italy, and wherever I go I can see how others perceive us, how our nation is perceived outside of its borders, how much desire there is for this nation, how much respect and admiration there is for Italy. So, those travelling from other parts of the world to come here to Italy, to the Abruzzo Region and to the other regions involved in this event, expect a lot from us, and we have to give it all we’ve got to make their experience unforgettable. This will pay off, many times over. It will pay off for Abruzzo and for all the cities involved, and this is the second reason why I consider this event to be particularly important. There are six here, meaning Abruzzo will play the leading role in the competition, as has been mentioned. The other regions are clearly also very important, but this is an opportunity for Abruzzo.

Of course, L'Aquila is perhaps particularly well-known, Rome is certainly a very well-known city, as is Milan, but this event will also see the participation of cities that may be much less famous outside of our national borders but that have much to tell about themselves. This is Italy’s strength: we are the nation of villages and church towers, we are the nation with a thousand identities, we are the nation where each and every area has something truly unique to offer. This is an unprecedented opportunity to tell this to the world, to the 12 thousand people who will be coming from abroad, plus all those who will be following this event on social media and on TV. This is also an opportunity that this area is perfectly able to seize.
Then there are the young people, who are the third important reason for this event. Roller sports of course involve all ages, with the number of disciplines now standing at 12; it’s all there. However, it was discovered at the Tokyo Olympics that skateboarding was the most followed event on social media, the most followed by young people.

What is so special about roller sports? Everything is a gym, everything is a playing field and, for those who believe that sport must be as accessible as possible for everyone (because it has so many benefits that I shan’t go into here because I don’t want to go through all the reasons why sport is important for the young generations), what we have here is the best example of a sport that is able to reach everyone – they just need a pair of roller skates on their feet. That’s the way it is. Cities become gyms, pavements become places to train. This is a symbol of accessible sport, reaching everyone. Everyone can become champions from nothing. Everyone can make it from nothing, with roller sports offering a chance even to those who don’t have the means and haven’t had the opportunities, who don’t have a family behind them. This is a great lesson and this is why these disciplines are continuing to grow so much for enthusiasts and amateurs.

Then, we must also mention (President Aracu, I’m surprised you didn’t), that the FISR [Italian Roller Sports Federation] has also given us plenty of satisfaction in terms of the Italian National Olympic Committee’s medal collection, right? This federation has always been among those that have contributed the most to the Italian National Olympic Committee’s medal collection, and this also means something. So, this is not simply about organising a major event, although we will clearly do our best. President Marsilio was complaining, as usual for him, but, for starters, today we signed a Cohesion Agreement worth EUR 1.3 billion for the Abruzzo Region, so today ‘stai bene così’ [‘you’re good for today’] as we’d say in Rome. We will, however, do our best and continue to do our part: we will do so for this area, home to proud, hard-working people who are not asking for grants or privileges from the State, but are rather asking for the opportunity to be able to compete on an equal footing and show what they’re worth; we will do so for this nation which, I guarantee you, is well respected and loved around the world far more than we ourselves sometimes manage to love and respect it; and, we will do so for these fantastic youngsters competing in these wonderful disciplines, whom I greet and thank and who I hope can win a medal tomorrow and perhaps we will receive them at Palazzo Chigi, just as we do for our many champions. 

Good luck everyone, I wish you all the best with your work and may this be a great and unforgettable event for all those who experience it. Thanks to all of you.

[Courtesy translation]