Without a quorum, the Roda era at Fisi ends after 14 years

After 14 years, the Flavio Roda era at the Italian Winter Sports Federation ends: the 78-year-old Emilian does not reach the two-thirds of the quorum necessary for his re-election as president - the threshold foreseen for a fourth term. Alberto Tomba's former coach stops at 57.88% and will no longer be able to try again for his old throne. However, a hypothesis that remains open, regulations in hand, for Antonio Noris (second with 35.97% of the votes) and Roberto Bortoluzzi (who collected 2.52%).

For the Fisi, a still uncertain scenario is now opening up: Roda could remain in the saddle for the ordinary administration by calling new elections within 90 days, which however would fall in the middle of the ski season. The alternative is his resignation, which would lead to an automatic commissionership, with the possibility of calling a new vote even beyond the winter. For Roda, however, it is the moment of bitterness: "In these two months of the campaign I noticed this malice towards me - he says -. It wasn't a campaign with arguments, it was just malice, and also using very difficult moments for me too, such as the disappearance of these two young people (Matilde Lorenzi and Matteo Franzoso, ed.) only at the end of the electoral campaign. This is pure profiteering".

"I know well what I have done, I know that I have given everything I could give to the federation, together with many people - the outgoing president, in office since 2012, comments -. I only hope that someone arrives who cares about the athletes, who does not abandon the athletes, because this is the most important asset of the federation. The balance is positive, first of all for the activity of our athletes. From a financial point of view we have worked well in recent years, we have managed to remedy the shortcomings".

His presidency, illuminated by the stars Sofia Goggia and Federica Brignone in alpine skiing and by the explosion of Italian biathlon, was also the presidency that led to the Milan Cortina Olympics: "This whole world, in my opinion, has grown a lot. It's a phenomenal thing, the athletes we have are truly the best. The only thing that can be disappointing is perhaps no longer being at their side. Of course I will miss that."

And while Roda watches the closing credits ("In the end I had a good majority anyway, so it means that the majority of this assembly, thank goodness, recognizes something"), it is the second most voted, Antonio Noris, who relaunches: "Today's passage does not exhaust this discussion - he promises after the vote -. The ideas that emerge remain at the disposal of the movement and will be able to contribute to the decisions that will come".