It was a “white African” that opened the crudeggio today. His name is Totò Antiboa prestigious runner who summarizes and embodies the identity values of the competition conceived and promoted by Legambiente. National and world level athlete has been strongly chased by the organizers Nuccio Barillà and Nino Catanese precisely for the value of which he witnesses. His story was presented yesterday on the terrace of Chef Filippo Cogliandro In a happy combination of passion and positive ties with the territory in which men’s actions have a reverberation on the entire community.
“It is not only a name linked to great sporting successes but also an example of humanity, determination and passion”. Thus highlights Nuccio Barillà alongside the athlete born in Altofonte (Palermo) in 1962 and became one of the greatest Italian athletes of all time capable of dominating the races of the middle and international middle and international level in the 80s and 90s.
At the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988 he won the silver medal in the 10,000 meters and, in the same discipline, he managed to conquer gold at the European Championships of Split 1990, also establishing the European record. It imposes itself with its speed and resistance on the much more famous Ethiopian and Keniot athletes (hence the aforementioned nickname) arousing great wonder between experts and spectators. But more than athletic qualities are precisely human ones to remain impressed. He also demonstrated it yesterday when he resumed Nuccio Barillà who had indicated him as “Ambassador of the Correggio” and he immediately shielded himself by saying “I am only an ordinary boy”. No, his is not an ordinary story but it is a story marked by a personal competition against a subtle enemy, epilepsy.
It is 1992, there are the Tokyo Olympics. The athlete is engaged in the 10,000 meters final: “Suddenly Totò gets off, slows down, slips back losing positions, with an unusual proceeding almost by inertia. In the end it is the last overcome by everyone ». It practically suffers a sudden attack of evil which, will be discovered later, was caused by a road accident under 3 years. The specialist Angelo Labate explains it to us, the neurologist who constantly follows him, also Runner: “One who made his performance with the brain problem he had since he was very young is a phenomenon twice”.
This is the testimony that Corrireggio wanted to transmit in sharing with other authoritative subjects of our territory such as Mimmo Praticò (President Lions Club Zone 1), the historic Calabrian athlete Alberto Adamo, the commentator Tonino Raffa and the National Manager UNVS (National Union veterans of Sport) Mimmo Postorino.