Il Tenente Colonnello Gianfranco Paglia vince il titolo paralimpico di classe 2 ai Mondiali Master di tennistavolo di Roma
(Adnkronos) - Il Tenente Colonnello Gianfranco Paglia, Medaglia d’Oro al Valor Militare e capitano del Gruppo Sportivo Paralimpico della Difesa, è uno dei protagonisti delle gare paralimpiche, che per la prima volta sono state inserite all’interno dei Campionati Mondiali Master di tennistavolo, in corso alla Nuova Fiera di Roma.
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00:00Lieutenant-Colonel Gianfranco Paglia, I would say that we start with the gold medal to the military valor, which is important.
00:07Captain of the Paralympic Defense Group and last, but not last, current result,
00:15Class 2 gold medal here at the Masters of the World Championships and Table Tennis.
00:21How does this great passion of yours come about?
00:24I think sport is always beautiful, especially to practice it, because I say that it manages to break down all kinds of barriers, both physical and mental.
00:37Here it is beautiful because they managed to organize a fantastic event in Italy.
00:44It would be nice, I don't say it as a soldier, if the wars were fought through sport. We would have won all.
00:50This is absolutely true. A nice compliment also from Minister Grosetto this morning.
00:56Yes, he amazed me, he amazed me, but it was beautiful. I repeat, I leave the title to time, what matters is to be here.
01:05This is an event, as you have underlined, extremely inclusive,
01:11both because it gives the players the opportunity to play together, as we call them,
01:17and because of the number of countries, even those currently at war, that participate.
01:23Exactly, 110 countries, 6,000 competitors, it is proof that sport unites, not divides.
01:31Sport unites, not divides. Sport gives the possibility today even more, not only to enrich the medallists, but to recognize a lifestyle thanks to its values.
01:44Yes, this is the demonstration that those who live disability in a dignified, serene way are a normal person, unlike those who think otherwise.
01:55When was your passion for table tennis born?
02:00No, but I used to play before, then I had the experience of being a national counselor, I started playing in Lebanon.
02:10On a mission, there was a marshal who played in B, and there he told me, why don't we try to do it in an agonistic way, let's put it that way, but it was beautiful.
02:23This, as you know, is also a sport that has a diplomatic history that has united the countries.
02:30It's true, it's true, that's why I told you that it would be nice if today we thought more about having fun through sport than at war.
02:38Thank you, thank you very much.