CONI Chief Outlines 2024 Olympic Dream for Rome

Giovanni Malago tells Around the Rings that, while he wants to see the Olympics come to his home town, Rome will not bid for 2024 unless all the pieces fall into place.

Malago spoke to ATR June 10 at his office in CONI headquarters in Rome on the sidelines of the Centennial celebrations taking place for the Italian committee. His office on the CONI campus is surrounded by venues from the 1960 Olympics, a reminder to Malago of what happened here nearly 60 years ago. The CONI chief was born one year before those last Summer Games for Italy.

Malago was elected president of CONI in 2013, offering a five-point plan for changes at CONI. Professionally, he has been a business director and sports club leader.

This interview is the first Malago has given about a possible Rome bid to a publication based outside of Italy.

Around the Rings: Why do you think Rome is a good place to have the Olympics? What is the attraction of the city for the

Olympics?

Giovanni Malago: Bringing the Olympics to Rome is the dream of my life. I am from Rome. I love this city, and I think that Rome deserves this opportunity. Rome has it all. Rome is history. Rome is a global icon. It is everyone's heritage and everyone can feel at home here in Rome.

There isn't a particular attraction. There is Rome with more than three thousand years of history here at your fingertips, and you can touch this history as if it belonged to today.

ATR: It sounds like Rome will be a candidate.

GM: I would never make the mistake of thinking that we are obliged to candidate Rome, Italy if we’re not sure if we’re in the best condition to win the candidacy. It means the people need to be convinced, 100 percent. The majority of the city government and the president are important, but at the same time, the most important stakeholder of our country is the population.

Anything is possible, and we have to see exactly what will be the situation of politics in Italy at the end of spring 2015 and at the beginning of summer. In that period, if the majority is okay, if everyone in government is okay, than there are all the conditions to go on for the candidature.

ATR: Do you believe the people of Rome would be in favor of a referendum for the Olympics?

GM: I think so. We have recently had positive results in surveys on this matter. Over 70 percent of the population is in favor of a major sporting event like the Games. And this percentage also increases if the survey is extended to the population of the Lazio Region, i.e. the greater metropolitan area that that lies around and near Rome. Obviously, we need to reconsider the issue at the time of any official application.

ATR: Why is it different now than three years ago, when the government decided not to support a bid?

GM: There are three conditions: first of all, because [former prime minister] Mario Monti doesn’t have the same strongsensibility towards the world of sport, and instead [current prime minister] Matteo Renzi has a strong sports background. Second, because the situation of Italy is not a good situation, but it is better than three years ago. Third, this government was not elected technically but is a political government. The other government was a technician government, and technicians have the mentality to do the strict things on their mandate.

ATR: People have been thinking that 2024 is the time that the United States might get the Olympics again. If they come upwith a candidacy, they could be a very strong candidate. What about the possibility of having to compete against the U.S. for an Olympic Games?

GM: First of all, my colleague [USOC chairman] Larry Probst has great consideration for me and a great respect, and vice versa. I spoke to him about this situation. Rome or any other cities in the world have to consider their strengths and not thestrengths of the competitors. Any of us are obliged to play our own match.

ATR: Is 2024 the target?

GM: 2024 is the target, but in Italy, we havea slogan: we will not become ill if we do not go on with the candidature. But we are thinking and studying to do it and to do it better. However, we are not obliged to do it.

ATR: Is there any warning for a Rome bid as a result of the loss of Cortina for the ski world championships?

GM: I think they are two completely different games because the stakeholders are different. In my opinion, Cortina was and

remains an excellent candidate for the World Alpine Ski Championships. Rome has unique qualities and characteristics for the Summer Olympic Games.

ATR: What do you think Rome needs to do to be really ready for the Olympics? Are there big projects or changes that must be made? New sports facilities?

GM: Of course, we need to think, and I am thinking about it every day with people of the city and of the government of atailor-made project. I think it’s easy to understand that we are not able to plan and present a giant project like Beijing orSochi. We are not in the condition to put a description on this race, but I think we are in a strong condition to organizesomething tailor-made for Rome with unique characteristics that are in the flavor of many people, the IOC, and followers of sports.

This does not mean we will not be efficient, and it doesn’t mean we don’t like to be modern. And, as you know, with theIOC, I think they are going in a similar direction. Rome has to think about the reality of their city. There are only 3-4 million inhabitants in Rome, but according to kilometers per square meters, it is the second largest town in the world because there is only one government for all the people. We have to think of transport, the needs of the competition, and we have to be in the condition to invest in the Mediterranean area. Things like this have to be put in consideration.

ATR: How about sports venues? Do you have all the venues you need?

GM: We have a lot of venues, but of course we have to think about what we can do, what the best solution would be. Wehave some ideas, but first we need to speak with the government.

ATR: But you need an Olympic Village, so that might be your biggest single project.

GM: Of course. The idea is that the finalized project will have something to do with the heritage of this city. We will study ifthere is the possibility to transform something or part of something that already exists because everything has to be done in the needs of the Olympic Games, but we can’t leave anything that could be a problem in the future.

I’d like to share something else. I spoke last month with a group that represented ecological concerns. In these terms, I can tell you that everything will be studied and put into considerations. We need to go in the direction of a historic area and an ecological candidature. This will be a peculiar characteristic of an eventual candidature.

ATR: Do you like the idea of the IOC asking what’s best for the cities, instead of coming to the city and telling them what tobuild?

GM: I spoke many times with Thomas Bach about this matter. I consider his idea a winning idea. It could be seen as a simple idea, but it is very original. If you put the same parameters on every Olympic Games, it would not make any sense. An Olympic Games with different parameters could be a plus. For example, there may be less seats in a stadium, but moreatmosphere.

ATR: You would like to be involved in leading an Olympic bid?

GM: No, I think that every one of us in Italy with an important role in sport has to think just for the result.

Conducted in Rome by Ed Hulaand transcribed byAndrew Murrell

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