An unexpected withdrawal, motivated by unspecified heart problems, which prevent him from attempting to win a third Olympic medal in foil in three months’ time in Paris, after the gold in Rio and the silver in Tokyo. Yet, Daniele Garozzo’s sudden farewell to the platform, at just 31 years old, brings with it new missions, new hopes. And it is also here that the size of a sample is measured.
“My heart is hurt,” the 31-year-old Sicilian, former legend of Italian fencing and boyfriend of Alice Volpi, who is also a foil champion, writes on Instagram. But then, Garozzo, born in Acireale, abandons himself to a flood of thanks to all those people who accompanied him and helped him grow during a glorious career. Master Fabio Galli above all. Garozzo has won a lot in his career both on an individual level and with the national team: in team foil, in particular, he won four world gold medals in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2022. “It’s a decision that arose from circumstances beyond my control – he adds – but which I accept with serenity.
And then, here’s the jab at destiny. Daniele is a doctor, graduated with honors from Tor Vergata in 2022. And with this piece of paper of inestimable weight in his hand he already identifies his new goals: “For some time now – he writes – I had decided to dedicate my professional life to medicine, today with an even clearer objective: to study and disseminate the cardiological conditions that can afflict the sporting population”. Immediate applause from everyone, from standard bearer Gianmarco Tamberi to his colleague and fellow countryman Rossella Fiamingo. Garozzo has already won another medal that shines.
