For Benini, a debate should not be started on how good Tittia is, but on how poor the others are
Summer and sporting events are upon us. And here we are again with Paolo Benini, former Sports Councillor for the Municipality of Siena, now back to his precious collaborations with athletes of swimming, athletics and sailing in view of the Paris Olympics…
Hi Paolo, thanks as usual, the fact that the Tour de France started from Florence and put all the greatest stage riders of the moment at the starting line stimulates some considerations for you…
“Cycling is the sport that best combines history and modernity. If you see images of the old champions, of the old Tours or Giri, you have no idea of the time gone by because the epic nature of the feat is beyond. At the same time, perhaps, it is the sport that is hyper-technological more than others: from bicycles to modern training techniques, to instruments that detect parameters of various kinds. And then there is the effort and the ability to resist; something that takes us back to the origins of man and his ability to resist more than the animal while he hunted him. Fatigue is a fantastic thing.”
“In fact, I believe there is no sport like cycling in going “beyond”, when a climb is hard, very hard… and there are still a hundred or more kilometres to go, and you feel your conviction slipping away… As an example, let’s remember a stage of the Giro on 25 May 2018 in which the British Chris Froome went solo with three GPMs and 82 km to go and won the pink jersey…
“The point is that we don’t understand enough how sport, in general and more than others, is a truly essential field for observing psychological phenomena. Belief, as I always say, always comes before action. It’s called self-efficacy and it’s a concept by Bandura that has been studied a lot. Albert Bandura was a Guru in the sector. There is no action without convinced thought. When Froome does that action, before doing it you have to be convinced that you have the potential, otherwise you certainly won’t do it. And I would avoid making comments about doping etc. The strongest were the strongest, and in a certain historical phase doping was very widespread… everyone?”
Anyway, come on. Today we would like to take you on a little thing where you should be absolutely prepared, because in addition to playing Fontegiusta you will have also been a page in Istrice or something else… The Palio, our Palio. Are the jockeys the only subjects who must give a better mental performance during its performance?
“Well! The Palio seems like a separate thing. But there is an observation I want to make: once upon a time many of us were inside the Palio, some more than others, but inside. Today many, due to profound social changes, enter only on those days and it is a bit like a theater stage. There are a thousand other interests, many work outside Siena and return on those days. One of my sons, at 15, was in Singapore for 20 days to do the first Youth Olympics, the other in Buzios for a youth world championship. At their age, I wondered what a plane was and it seemed like an adventure to go by train to Florence. Honestly, all this conservation that tends to keep the dimension of time unchanged seems to me to transform the Palio into a theatrical show”.
“I cannot be doubted as a conservative – continues Paolo Benini – but we need to have a philosophy that guides more modern and engaging actions beyond the four days… in short, I could say much more and much worse, but let’s conclude here by saying that I don’t I think it’s a good performance… The jockeys? Well, from my point of view, reading or listening to interviews, few people have the real spark. Even watching the race I have the sensation of seeing only two/three who are always present to themselves.”
In a party like ours where, sometimes, losing is as important as winning, or is it even equated, how is the “beyond all victory” quotient attributed?
“There is no problem. Oltreogni vittoria talks about a method that starts from sports to reach ordinary people. Once you have established the goal, oltre ognivittoria is the way you do it so if the goal is to make people lose you have to do it well”.
For the jockey there is also the “fear” factor. Fear of the choice in the competitive commitment, fear of the consequences. An emotion that seems to be dominated only by the “German” Tittia. What are your suggestions?
“One’s ability is determined by one’s own abilities, by the luck that, if you are capable, you encounter it more easily and by the inability of others. Tittia’s dominance should not spark a debate about him but about the others who appear to be supporting actors. They should ask themselves this instead of accepting a scale of values that relegates them to the role of being of service. Some people do it or try to do it, but most travel on values that they believe are consolidated. The Mexico City long jump record (Robert Beamon, 8.90, 1968) was broken when someone started saying it could be broken; that someone was Carl Lewis even if it was someone else who later broke that record (Mike Powell, 8.95, Tokyo, 1991)”.
If a person like you were to help a jockey keep his commitment on fire, what would you consider the greatest dangers: the very hot crossing of the track during the parade, those twenty thirty minutes waiting for the firecracker to explode in the entrance, the exhausting ritual of the mossa. These are moments in which the brain cooks…
“I worked with some jockeys. Three to be exact. Those aspects are part of running and you have to be trained to manage them. An Olympic sailing athlete can stay in the middle of the sea for up to 4/5 hours waiting for the wind to arrive and then perhaps do nothing because the wind doesn’t arrive. And this “music” can be repeated for up to six consecutive days. A 1500m long distance swimmer swims over 2500km per year in training and does 10 training sessions a week. The synchro girls do training blocks of 9/10 hours a day for 20 consecutive days. The jockeys? What you indicate are important moments in which you can pay a price if you are not ready.”
Is a jockey a super-athlete or a man who has found a way to work hard and live well enough?
“Believe me, they do very little compared to other real athletes. The point is that sometimes we see a 100m freestyle run in 46″80 (the current record held by Pan Zhamle) and in those few seconds we don’t see the hours and years of training it takes to even think we can get there . Each must be evaluated in its context. So, yes, they make a good living by doing the right thing.”
I know you like being reckless. As with all you students of the mind. A thousand years ago before evolution was only technological, the study of the powers of the mind had evolved. Someone claims that when tens of thousands of minds all together think the same thing – and in the Palio there are two or three things to think about – energies are stirred. Does anyone remember some phenomenon that can be classified as a poltergeist. Are you for the absolute negative or do you have considerations to offer us?
“I once read a book where it was said that somewhere the fact that a population prayed together had reduced the number of crimes. I think there is an interconnection an “entanglement” as mentioned in quantum physics. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I try, I can’t study everything. It’s my big worry, I would really like to know more about more.”
At this point, we say goodbye by asking your favors for the “beyondevervictory” champions of the last few days…
“I was moved by the photo of Martina Carraro at the Foro Italico at Sette Colli, where she didn’t reach the Olympic minimum, receiving the public’s tribute and most likely saying goodbye to swimming. A decade of stellar swimming”.
(On the cover, the photo of the move in the fourth round is by Giulia Brogi, the photo of Martina Carraro at the Sette Colli Trophy is by Corsia4)
