With the men’s slalom which has seen today the protagonist Matteo Gatti, the competitions of the San Marino athletes in Beijing come to an end. Gatti was looking for redemption after the giant on Sunday, where he had suffered one disqualification for early departure, and found it. Starting with bib number 83 out of 88 athletes at the start, Gatti concluded the first heat in 49 positionwith a time of 1.08.52 and then completed the second heat with a time of 1.03.41, which earned him the 43rd place finish.

“Today I feel relieved – comments the athlete -, I had to redeem myself after the mistake made in the giant. I wanted bring home the race at any cost, that’s why I tried not to risk too much. The first heat was quite difficult due to a very angled track. In the second heat I found one track in better condition, starting with a lower number; it spun less and was faster and smoother ”.

The overall balance of his Olympic participation can be said to be positive. “Too bad for how it ended up in the giant – comments Gatti -, but I’m satisfied. I am one of the few San Marino citizens to be qualified and have completed a slalom race and this is it a source of pride“. The Olympics is an experience that Gatti will remember for a long time. “It was all beautiful – he says -. Covid partly conditioned the event, but less than I expected. We also got used to having tampons every morning, it has now become a routine.

I am happy to have shared this experience with Anna Torsani. We have been skiing together since we were children and it is nice to be here together ”. The thought now goes to Milan Cortina Olympics. “I would like to be there – he says -, I will do everything to achieve this goal. But even before that I hope to be at the start of the World Cup next year“. And now is it time to rest? Not at all. “Now I’m going to study – concludes Gatti -. Tomorrow I have a technical physics exam“.