Born in 1945, married, he has children and grandchildren: he is the king of kayaking. He will be in Tokyo after having participated in the World Cup 13 times
IVREA
The Olympics that will take place in Tokyo next July will mark the ninth participation in the Summer Olympics for the Eporediese Roberto D’Angelo. A record. An extraordinary milestone for the athlete first and then the technician of the canoe kayak slalom. Born in Bollengo on 21 June 1945, married to Silviana, Roberto D’angelo has two children and as many grandchildren. He began his sporting career as a kayakist in 1961 until 1975, the year of the last World Championships in which he participated.
To his credit twenty-four National Championships between downhill and slalom. He also participated in thirteen World Championships between slalom and downhill, obtaining a seventh place in the slalom in Bourg. St. Maurice in 1969, a tenth place in downhill at Merano in 1971 and a twelfth place in the 1972 Munich Olympic slalom.
Those of Monaco were the first ever for the slalom canoe, then it was necessary to wait twenty years to see the second ones, those of Barcelona in 1992.
From those, D’Angelo began a new cycle as a coach of various national teams and participation in all the Olympics that took place up to the last in Rio de Janeiro 2016.
«Unexpectedly for a few days I have been certain that I will be present – Roberto D’Angelo tells us – also at my ninth Olympics, that of Tokyo representing Belgium. A journey that began over fifty years ago, spent between great difficulties and gratifications, where I realized how important it was to fight every day by helping the people around me or who asked for my collaboration ».
«As mentioned, my second Olympics was in Barcelona with the role of coach support for the Spanish team. I must remember that with the occasion – continues D’Angelo – I also worked with a Peruvian athlete, Eric Arenas, already trained in Ivrea and with an Italian athlete from my club, Cristina Giai Pron. Back in Italy, in 1996 I held the position of technical director at the Atlanta Olympics. For the Sydney Olympics in 2000 my new position was technical director of the Spanish team and from 2002, a new change was made to manager of the Greek team at the Athens Olympics in 2004, the most beautiful and significant ever, where I lived a unforgettable experience in the very nation that created them. Also for Greece I was present at those of Beijing in 2008 and those of London in 2012. Finally in 2016 I participated in those of Rio, with the accreditation of Lebanon, to be able to follow an Italian athlete, Giovanni De Gennaro, with whom we had achieved Olympic qualification. Now I continue to look forward – concludes Roberto D’Angelo – stimulated by study and research to achieve further goals and I know that all this has helped me to grow and to be more and more aware of who I am thanks to the experiences I have lived and that I carry with me every day ».
Roberto D’Angelo then lived his sporting career around the world, leaving and returning to Ivrea always with a wealth of experience and technical ideas and human values. In Italy, Roberto D’Angelo’s qualification is first-class coach, canoe and cross-country ski instructor. –
maximum Sardinian