VARESE – The dossier is ready and will be presented next week. After several months of work behind the scenes Varese officially launches its candidacy to host the Championships Rowing World Championships 2027, the only international event still missing from Schiranna. The presentation today, Friday 14 June, at the Rowing Club headquarters, with the invitation to the entire territory to play as a team.
Months of work
The candidacy is actually double: Varese is also applying to host the World Masters Championship 2026which the garden city has already welcomed in 2013. «I have found so far so much enthusiasm and interest around this candidacy – explained the general director of the Organizing Committee of international rowing events Pierpaolo Frattini – and there are several national teams that gravitate around Varese such as Australia who have said they will support us. It would be the culmination of a journey that began 15 years ago and the icing on the cake to consecrate Varese as one of the undisputed capitals of rowing».
The support of the Ministry
The institutional network supporting the candidacy was important, which saw the involvement of Ministry of Sports, with the meeting a month ago in Rome with Minister Abodi. «There was great collaboration in preparing the candidacy – said the mayor of Varese Davide Galimberti – the minister was immediately available and the opportunity of this event was seized not only for Varese but for the whole country and therefore there was an agreement to sign the letters of guarantee which are fundamental for the awarding of the events”. In particular the Ministry has put a guarantee on the table for 3 million euros, the Municipality of Varese for 1 and a half million.
There is trust
The mayor expressed confidence in the race for the world championship, as did the president of the Giuseppe Abbagnale Italian Rowing Federation. «The last one in Italy was in 2003 in Milan – he recalled – we will have other equally important competitors, but few places can boast the naturalistic and technical characteristics of this field. Let’s start with an important business card. I I’m confident, we have worked so that the result can happen, we aim to reach the finish line first. In 2027 the World Cup will be a qualifier for the 2028 Olympics, therefore more coveted.”
Varese’s proposal
For absolutes, which develop over the span of 8 days of racing (of which probably 4 finals), Varese is preparing a slightly different concept compared to the events hosted in recent years. In total we expect around 1200 athletes members from over 70 nations, plus the staff. As regards the stands the minimum standard required for the World Cup is 4000 seats. «We have found an excellent solution – explains Frattini – they will be divided between blankets and uncovered». Among the new features of the dossier a Rowers Arena (in the image below), an area dedicated to athletes and staff in Zanzi Park with a giant screen to follow the races. Then the creation of is planned a village dedicated to the Estensi Gardens to bring the event to the heart of the city with a dedicated connection service for spectators and tourists, a part of hospitality with shows. The classic awards ceremony will take place on the lake at the end of the regatta, but it is also scheduled later a second award ceremony in the evening inside the Gardens on a dedicated stage.
The verdict in November
The budget for the event is approximately 4.5 million euros. An estimated 120 thousand overnight stays, over 100 broadcasters and 400 hours of worldwide television coverage. «For an event of this kind – concluded Frattini – a positive return on the territory for 15 years is estimated». The municipality’s sports councilor Stefano Malerba, present at the conference together with the deputy mayor Ivana Perusin and the provincial councilor Michele Di Toro, still aimed high. “This is already a great challenge, then all that’s missing is the Summer Olympics: let’s hope we get there.” Several will follow in the coming months technical meetings with World Rowing to illustrate the Varese proposal on event management. The vote will take place in early November of the city candidate to the Council of International Federations. The opponents should be Lucerne and Bled: all the candidatures will be made official at the beginning of July.
world rowing championships Varese candidacy – MALPENSA24
