The event was also attended by the Commander of the Alpine Troops General of the Army Corps Alberto Primicerj, the president of the FISI Flavio Roda, the mayor of Sestriere Dr. Valter Marin and the engineer Giovanni Brasso president of Sestriere spa.
The Championships, now in their 66th edition, after 44 years will return to Sestriere, in the Milky Way area, already the scene of the 2006 Winter Olympics.During the 5 days of competitions, from 27 to 31 January, over 1.000 soldiers will compete against each other. 200 belonging to 15 foreign countries (Afghanistan, Austria, Bulgaria, France, Great Britain, Germany, Lebanon, Macedonia, Oman, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, United States, Switzerland, Hungary). The queen race of the championships will be the traditional platoon race during which 26 Italian and foreign teams will compete in disciplines such as slalom, shooting, hand grenade, topography, transport of injured and search for personnel overwhelmed by avalanches. intervention General Graziano declared that "the fundamental aspect of the event is the training to operate and live in the mountains, training that is also developed through these championships, which represent a moment of verification of the training level reached". "In the last international operations" continued the Army Chief of Staff "we have returned to operate significantly in the mountains. Kosovo, Bosnia, Afghanistan are mountainous environments and this requires that personnel train and prepare to operate in difficult, in challenging climatic conditions. The mountain is a school of life and it is necessary that all the specialties of the Armed Force be trained in this environment. "" The return of the Ca.STA in the Piedmontese mountains is important to testify that the Alpine troops are to be always present in this area, home to one of our important units, the Taurinense Alpine Brigade "added the Chief of Staff" The Army in general and in these areas the Alpine troops in particular are a resource for the country. Thanks to the specific training, the speed of intervention and the high mobility, the Alpine troops are always at the forefront to support the territory and the local community ". The President of the FISI, Flavio Roda wanted to thank the Italian Army in his speech. for everything he does for sport "My gratitude - underlined the President - is addressed not only to the athletes of the Army Sports Group, but also to all the military technicians, of the highest professional value, who work in the federation and provide a fundamental and high quality support. "The Italian Army has about 10.000 Alpine troops in service, 8% of whom are women. The Alpine troop departments, enlisted in all regions of Italy, are a resource for the country and for the mountains , committed to guaranteeing security in Italy and abroad with a long experience in the international field in missions in support of peace and stability in the world.
Source: EI
