“It would have been nice to play against …
by Gabriele Masiero
The Dream Volley of Pisa flies to the roof of Europe female volleyball seat and wins twice. Because it proves to be among the strongest teams in this sport and because it has been awarded to the whole world a very powerful message of inclusion, giving visibility to a unique sport of its kind. There sitting volleyball it is in fact a discipline that can be practiced by everyone, not only by Paralympic athletes.
The final stage of the Sitting volleyball women’s Champions Cup took place right in Pisa, in the beautiful facility of the Pisan club which last weekend became the European capital of this sport but also extraordinary epicenter of inclusion and solidarity because, it is fair to say immediately, among the national flags that framed the main pitch there were not only those of the countries of origin of the clubs involved in the field (Italy, Hungary, Slovenia And Poland) but also the Ukrainian one to remember the absent ones: that is the very strong one team of Kievforced to give up because of the war and in any case remembered among the protagonists of this sport: “Without them – she allowed Eva Ceccatellichampion and captain of Dream Volley Pisa – the prediction was all for us, but we would all be happy to feel less favored and to sweat more this historic title, even at the risk of not winning it, just to have the Ukrainian team here “.
The result of the field, moreover, was the umpteenth medal pinned on the chest of the Pisan champions (for years at the national top of this sport), but the real triumph is the visibility that they managed to dare a discipline that speaks to everyone a unique language. This was also recognized by the president of the Tuscan regional council, Antonio Mazzeowho witnessed the final stages of the Champions Cup in person: “It’s nice to know that sport is inclusion. It is obviously nice to be able to celebrate the successes in the league and those achieved internationally by these girls. But the message that was sent by Pisa and to the Tuscan citizens is this: believe in it, always believe in it and know that through sport you can look to the future with optimism and hope ”.
After all, Dream Volley is not satisfied with successes on the field, but was born precisely to project itself further: “The conquest of the female champions’ cup – summarizes Armanda Boccardo, who coordinates the team’s activities – makes me proud, because we are a group of wonderful athletes and managers, led by Eva Ceccatelli who perfectly represents the values and passion of our sports association. The organizational effort was not easy and we thank those who wanted to be close to us. We want Pisa and all of Italy to understand the richness of this discipline, but also the social value that similar events bring to our territory, far beyond performance or medals “.