ROME (ITALPRESS) – “For me and for the entire council it is not only a responsibility but also a great honor to represent the federation in the post-Chimenti era.” Picking up the legacy of Professor Franco Chimenti was Cristiano Cerchiai, the newly appointed president of the Italian Golf Federation, who is confident that he can continue in the wake of his predecessor. “Chimenti has always attributed to golf a growing prestige and credibility that today brings our sport to have a recognition of absolute value,” explained the number one of the Italian Golf Federation in an interview in the Rome editorial office of Italpress, “And I am not only referring to a great event such as the Ryder Cup, which will bring great benefits, but to all those relationships that Chimenti has developed over time and those actions he has put in place in terms of inclusiveness and eco-sustainability that today allow us and me to present golf as a sport that offers a thousand opportunities and is suitable for all ages and all potential players. It should also be said that during the Chimenti era there have been very important victories both on the professional circuit and with regard to the National Amateur team. It is an important identity, however, that we are happy to accept because we are eager to contribute to its growth.” Golf over time has become an Olympic discipline, and Italy has also had great champions like Rocca. But even today there is a large patrol of valuable Azzurri: “I am very optimistic in this respect,” Cerchiai continues, “Francesco Molinari is still a champion, with pleasure we underline the rebirth of Matteo Manassero, but on the European tour we have players such as Migliozzi, Laporta, Pavan and the young De Leo who are gradually becoming more and more established. And great satisfaction we receive from the women’s circuit, both on the major U.S. and European tours, thanks to Benedetta and Angelica Moresco, Alessia Nobilio, Alessandra Fanali, Roberta Liti and many others. However, I want to emphasize the commitment and successes of the Paralympic national team and their commissioner (Perrino, ed.), who is already European champion. In the future I see ample room to continue on the wave of successes.” Regarding the number of card-carrying members, Federgolf has “just over 94,000, and for that we have to give double kudos to athletes and coaches for the results we are achieving at the professional level. I think the federation now has to face a new path: first of all, it has to work on communication and make people perceive the game of golf in the right way. It is still experienced as an elitist sport and not for young people, but that is not the case. It is up to us to communicate it in the right way and to start a path of great collaboration with all the main players, both the masters and the clubs, including those with a tourist vocation. We have various projects that we will pursue with the sole purpose of growing our movement.” In short, golf can no longer consider itself a discipline for the wealthy: “Only the label has remained, the great skill of those who have worked in golf has been to build solutions suitable for all groups. We started out that way,” Cerchiai concludes, “but that is no longer the case.”- Italpress Photo -(ITALPRESS).
