Halftime, the teams leave the field to retreat to the changing rooms and pass the ball to other athletes, the kids participating in the integrated football project. You see them from the moment they cross the sideline, conquering the heart of the Orogel Stadium. You see the emotion that mixes with joy, as they head towards the door under the Curva Mare, which is there, crackling, waiting for them. In the middle there is a path made up of cones to dribble, passes and approaches to the shooting area. Here they arrive, one at a time, in full swing: goalkeeper on one side, ball on the other. Goal. The curve plays its part, indeed it does and the roar that descends from above is followed by the celebration of those who have scored more than one goal.
It’s nice to tell the stories of projects that bring something truly concrete to the community, in particular that part that is too often overshadowed by the frenetic pace of a life that doesn’t seem to have time for everyone. It’s nice to talk about, but much more, it’s nice to create those projects, which once you’ve discovered them, you never abandon them. Because you realize that day after day they change your life.
The main reference in the world of ‘integrated football’ in Cesena, but also at a national level, is Massimo Buratti, who has cultivated this project over the years, ensuring that the one launched by Cesena Calcio is the first totally inclusive and organized continuously throughout the season by a professional club in the galaxy of Italian football.
“The entire sporting world – argues Buratti – is paying more and more attention to the importance of integrating the activities of able-bodied athletes with those of those who have to deal with disabilities of various kinds. UEFA is also doing its part. acceleration of this path is given by a very simple and incontrovertible fact: this approach simply works and is of great value for the children and their families improvement of self-esteem. It’s heartbreaking to say it, but you can’t hide behind a finger: unfortunately for kids who live with mental disabilities this is often very low and above all it’s unmotivated this aspect bears important fruits. So much so that those who start attending our courses generally never stop, indeed always finding new stimuli and passions”.
The other decisive aspect is that of improving autonomy. “We proceed in small steps, without strength, timing or behaviour. But the facts are there, in front of everyone. The first approaches with the ball are complicated, the ball ends up being kicked away and control is lost. But the same people after a few months they change completely: they find more mastery of the movements, greater control of the body. The ball remains there, attached to the feet, even while they dribble the cones. The mind speaks and the body reacts”.
At the moment the Cesena team has 18 members, of various ages, who train twice a week for an hour and a half together with six rotating athletes from the Cavalluccio youth sector: “The collaboration with the nursery manager Filippo Biondi is very good – continues Buratti – and it is bringing excellent results. This project is an added value for everyone, including able-bodied kids who are getting closer to their peers in ways that perhaps they had never considered at school. It is one of the magic of sport: the ability to put everyone on the same level. Speaking of school, we also work with that institution to try to broaden the scope as much as possible, presenting families with an opportunity that shouldn’t be intimidating, but should at least encourage them to try because I know that once you try it, you’ll be hooked…”.
This is demonstrated by the fact that the older ones are now over twenty years old and continue to remain within the project: “We offer a valid prospect of real integration which, allow me, goes beyond the sport practiced only among people with disabilities. The full involvement of able-bodied athletes is the key to true and complete social inclusion.” Added to the 18 members from Cesena are those of the historic club founded by Buratti in Savignano and those of the more recent San Marino club: in all around fifty athletes who will meet at the Orogel Stadium in May to celebrate a special event dedicated to them.
