Many wanted to say goodbye Gigi Riva, Gigi for all the Cagliaritans and Sardinians who had welcomed him like a son in their land. Until 10pm yesterday, the closing time of the chapel of rest located in the atrium of the Unipol Domus, thousands of people queued for over a kilometre, to pay homage not only to the great Cagliari champion of the Scudetto and the national team, but man too. Many, in fact, already knew him when he had already finished his sporting career, which they only heard about and saw on TV and the internet, and appreciated the generous and shy man off the pitch. Not only fans but also families with children and many young people lined up from 7am this morning.
Two large screens are being set up in the churchyard and in Piazza dei Centomila in front of the Basilica of Bonaria. Here too, in fact, a large crowd is expected to participate in the funeral of the Cagliari and national team champion. In the meantime, the composed and silent tribute continues: thousands of Riva fans and admirers who have been crowding the space between the old and new stadiums since yesterday.
From the federal president, Gabriele Gravinato the Italian coach Luciano Spallettipassing through the 2006 world champions: the FIGC delegation, which arrived in Cagliari late in the morning, paid homage to Gigi Riva, first with its presence at the funeral home and in the afternoon with its presence at the funeral of the absolute top scorer in the history of the national team. With Gravina, the FIGC delegation arriving from Rome includes Matteo Marani and Giancarlo Abete, presidents respectively of the Lega Pro and the Dilettanti, the former n.1 of the federation, Franco Carraro, Spalletti with the Italian team manager and 2006 world champion Gigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro who was captain of that Italy, and then Simone Perrotta, Marco Amelia, Angelo Peruzzi, Marco Tardelli and Giancarlo De Sisti. The president of CONI Giovanni Malagò will also participate in the funeral.
“Heroes like Riva will never stop being close to us: he had this great quality of being humble and respectable. He had the characteristic of being a protagonist without wanting to attract the spotlight to himself. For him, his loved ones and his friends were important. His behavior after the World Cup victory is emblematic: he disappears to leave the light to others”, said Spalletti. “The nickname – he added – says a lot: his shot and his moral value made more noise than his words “.
Video Riva, fans queuing outside the stadium for the funeral home
“Gigi Riva has deep roots in the past, in the present and which we want to project into the future. I believe that football cannot afford to abandon the spirit that Gigi Riva embodied and which I believe is appreciated by all football fans of any shirt and by all athletes and a good part of the national community”, said the Sports Minister Andrea Abodi, to the reporters who were waiting for him outside the funeral home set up at the Unipol Domus. “The solemn funeral was proclaimed precisely because it recognizes not only the sporting aspect but also the moral aspect which objectively is not widespread in this time”, he concluded.
The president of CONI was also at the funeral home Giovanni Malagò. “Objectively I struggle to find someone who, in the world of sport, was more upright than him from all points of view. Then someone says ‘those were different times’, but I think that today, but also in a thousand years, he would be That was the case anyway,” he said. “He is a heritage of the world of football but also of Italian sport – he added – he will remain here in Sardinia and I believe that he will become a place of pilgrimage”
The funeral chapel is expected to close at 1pm, then the coffin will be transferred to the Basilica of Our Lady of Bonaria where at 4pm the Archbishop of Cagliari and general secretary of the CEI, Monsignor Giuseppe Baturi, will celebrate the funeral. Inside the church, at the request of the family, photos and videos will be prohibited.
There will be thousands of people here too. The FIGC leaders and the minister of sport, Cagliari Calcio but also other players and coaches will participate in the celebrations. A delegation of the 2006 world champions is expected when Riva was general manager of the national team.
For further information Agenzia ANSA Farewell to Gigi Riva, the greatest striker of the national team – Indices – Ansa.it Rombo di Tuono remains the greatest Italian striker with 35 goals and number 11 in Cagliari’s 1970 championship (ANSA)
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