Forgive my curiosity, but what led you to accept this new commitment at the Academy HC Lugano Foundation?
«I consider myself a dreamer, an idealist, a lover of the sport of hockey and attentive to the needs of our young people. I share this vision with my Council colleagues, Fabio Gaggini, Emilio Martinenghi, Luca Pedrotti and Lara Pozzoli."
For her, therefore, hockey is an illness from which it is impossible to recover...
"I really think so. I discovered hockey in 1977, but I couldn't practice it because at 14 it was too late to learn to skate. I grew up admiring Alfio Molina and since then I have always been a passionate fan of the national team: the first World Cup in 1987 in Vienna, then a long interruption for work reasons, and finally a long series of away games: in addition to Bern, Stockholm, Helsinki, Minsk, Moscow, Prague, Paris, Riga… as well as the Turin Olympics. A fantastic atmosphere, both because black and white or blue and white we all become red and white, and because a festive atmosphere reigns among the fans of the various nations. In recent years (2018-2020) I was then a member of the HC Ladies Lugano Committee: it was an important experience that helped me to know and understand the mechanisms that regulate the functioning of a sports team and the expectations of the environment that surrounds it."
Let's come to the Academy foundation. What is its purpose?
«The Foundation supports the HC Lugano Association in the promotion and training of its Youth Sector. Essentially it deals with the collection of funds which are given directly to the Youth Sector. The Foundation paid a total of CHF 625. But, I would like to underline it forcefully, our intervention cannot in any way be limited only to integrating the budget: it is instead a question of supporting development and improvement projects, such as those supported in recent times by our Foundation and without which it would not be it was possible to realize them: from the summer ice, to overcome a 000-month interruption in training, to the Skills coach, to improve skating in all its details, shooting and handling of the puck under the guidance of a specialist. The list of projects to support is long: from the pro off-ice Coach to the high school tutor for coordination and help with studying."
Why is the growth of the youth sector so important for HC Lugano?
«The Youth Sector takes care of around 400 boys and girls, professionally trained by 24 coaches, of which 9 professionals and 15 volunteers. Furthermore, the sector can count on more than 130 volunteers who carry out different roles (jury table, companions, yellow house, director, referees). The task of the Youth Sector is to support young people in their formation as complete athletes, and at the same time support them in order to complete their scholastic and professional training. The Youth Sector therefore transmits important sporting and educational values to the young talents while respecting the personal development of the child. Young people are taught to get involved but above all to have fun and form a team spirit, all fighting together for a single goal, with the dream of one day being able to join the first team. The support given at different levels to these kids is very important considering that they are faced every day with several hours of training in cold temperatures, with hours of travel interspersed with days of study and hours of recovery. In this context, sporting commitment must not become an obligation which then generates stress and frustration, but maintain its dimension as an opportunity for growth, fun, physical and mental well-being".
So what is the Academy model you have in mind to create?
«We want to support projects that benefit young people who, at various levels and in different fields, make up the overall Ticino hockey movement, without necessarily just the first team of HC Lugano benefiting from them. It is in fact true that the Youth Sector, also with the support of the HC Lugano Academy Foundation, has trained many players who have then found an outlet in our current first team, including Luca Fazzini, Giovanni Morini, Marco Zanetti, Thibault Fatton our third goalkeeper and already goalkeeper of the Under 20 national team or our Head Coach, Luca Gianinazzi. But it must also be remembered that he has also trained players who have found their outlet in other teams, such as Alessio Bertaggia, now in Geneva, Dario Simion and Elia Riva, now in Zug, or Elvis Merzlikins who, as is known, even plays in the NHL. What is important to underline is that many people have also emerged from the Youth Sector who have subsequently found success in various other professional fields. And this is the true meaning and mission of a Youth Sector. Group sport can be very educational for a young person, especially if well combined with studies. The sacrifices that children have to face to combine sport and studies lead them to develop resilience and competitiveness, two important characteristics in the education of a young person."
Along which lines and with which partners will the Academy Foundation move in the coming months?
«We are very clear about the objective we have set ourselves, which is to contribute to the formation of healthy and motivated youth. To achieve this goal it is necessary, together with our colleagues on the Council, to fight with all our weight in search of recurring supporters and benefactors who will provide the solidity necessary to support the Youth Sector for many years to come. This means developing credible projects that can arouse the interest of partners and sponsors aware of the educational and social value of our initiatives. But we will also turn to Municipalities and public bodies and institutions in order to involve them in projects which, precisely because of their content, have a strong impact on the communities and territory of Ticino. Young people are our greatest wealth and we want to help them grow so that they are authentic sportsmen, perhaps even hockey champions, but above all capable of building their future and that of Ticino with loyalty, courage and tenacity."
