The boss of Italian sport is still him, Giovanni Malago. The president of CONI was re-elected in the first ballot, with 55 votes, easily beating the competition of Renato Di Rocco, outgoing president of the Cycling Federation (which he has headed since 2005) and of the Olympic cycling champion Antonella Bellutti, who obtained only 1 vote. For Malagò, therefore, green light for the third consecutive term: a cycle that began in 2013 but which is destined to end at the end of the four-year period that is about to begin, given that it is not possible to apply for a fourth position. Malagò will therefore be president of the Italian Olympic Committee until 2025, that is, on the eve of the highly anticipated Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, which he himself has been able to obtain, also by virtue of his role as a member of the IOC, since 2019.
“It will be the third term, the last. I will spare no effort to be strong and credible in this stormy time. There is nothing more beautiful than being the president of Coni. He will always be on the side of sport. Thanks also to my opponents, only electoral”: these are the first words of the 62-year-old Roman manager. Now the elections for the appointment of the junta will take place. The moment of storm to which Malagò refers obviously concerns several fronts, from the pandemic emergency which also affected the budgets of the sports federations and the organization of the most important events (starting from the next Tokyo Olympics, which will take place in a thousand difficulties and discontent), to the challenge of the home Olympics in 2026, which will be the legacy of Coni's number 1, up to the political turbulence, with Coni himself who, following a reform by the Conte1 government, had formally lost his autonomy with respect to Government. This short circuit had jeopardized the participation of the Italian athletes in the Games scheduled for July, then everything was resolved but not without consequences.
Malagò's career as a sports manager began in 1997 with the presidency of the Circolo Canottieri Aniene in Rome, then in 1998 he was appointed president of the organizing committee of the tennis internationals at the Foro Italico, while from 2000 to 2001 he was president of basketball Virtus Roma . He was also the promoter of Rome's Olympic candidacy, which however was not then supported by the Government.
