In the afternoon of today, at the Airport of Pratica di Mare, the deputy chief of defense, gen. sa Roberto Nordio, received the military athletes returning from Russia, where they participated in the 3 ^ Edition of the Winter Military World Games of the International Council of Military Sport (CISM).
The 27 Italian athletes - 13 of the Army, 5 of the Carabinieri and 9 of the Guardia di Finanza - competed, from 20 to 27 February, immersed in the enchanting natural scenery of Sochi, in the six disciplines of the Games - Nordic skiing, biathlon , downhill skiing, climbing, short track and skiing orienteering - winning 8 gold medals, 6 silver and 6 bronze, thus providing a real "test of strength", testifying to the high technical value and of the preparation achieved.
First-class results that allowed the Italian representative to place themselves in second place in the final medal stand behind the strong Russian team. An even more significant milestone if one considers that our military athletes were confronted with representatives of 25 nations, some of them with a strong coat of arms in winter sports such as Switzerland, Germany and Austria.
The deputy chief of the defense, which led the greeting and complacency of the Chief of Staff, General Claudio Graziano, unable to attend due to institutional commitments, stressed that "every sport, even individual ones, has at its base the concept of team play, where every contribution, by itself, is not enough but is essential for the final success ". "In fact - continued the gen. Nordio - is the same concept that animates the work of the individual armed forces, which, despite their specificity and peculiarity, are capable of creating a system to achieve the common goal ".
After the final greetings, the athletes will enjoy a period of well-deserved rest, but not too long considering the imminent start of the Alpine Troops Skiing Championships of the Army, scheduled in Alta Pusteria, from 13 to 19 next March.
