The plagues visit Italy: gales, strike, Pavarotti death
Italy must be reeling. First huge winds strike the coast (including Riccione), then their beloved opera tenor dies. And now I hear that air traffic controllers are on strike! Great timing for folks flying in for the 17th World Masters Athletics Championships. One athlete, stuck in London, just wrote me: “I was scheduled to leave at 8:20 a.m. to Bologna, but the Italian Air Traffic Controllers went on strike! Right now, I’m on standby for a 14:55 flight to Bologna but I may miss the declaration deadline. I’m hearing that the next available flights aren’t til Saturday night. Hope I make this one. I e-mailed (USA team manager) Philip Greenwald and the LOC to let them know my situation. Maybe I’m not the only one with this problem.”
Earlier, Canadian sprinter Jimson Lee wrote from Riccione and sent along two cell-phone images.
He said:
I was expecting fantastic weather for a world renown beach resort. What did I expect the day before the competition, as I went through the usual accreditation process? It was cold, heavy rain, and extreme wind conditions, enough to bring down some trees. See attached photos. The forecast is a high of 17C, low of 12C. This is just like home in Vancouver, BC!
Meanwhile, as a result of Tuesday’s storm, WMA has moved the cross country races. The WMA Web site reports: “New Venue for Cross Country. The venue for the cross country races changes from San Giovanni to Riccione (Parco della Resistenza close to Riccione Stadium).”
Here are the shots Jimson sent:
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And more storm damage:
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2 Responses
I’m on my way to Riccioni. My plane is delayed on Northwest because they don’t have enough pilots. I booked a flight to Amsterdam with a transfer to Bologna. Hopefully, the strike will be settled by the time I hit Europe. They let me carry on my discus. Perhaps I can find a pickup meet in Holland.
I was the one with the issue in London…The story continued with 3 tries on stand-by with the 3rd one a success! Flew to Bologna and there was a Baggage Handler strike…When I got my bags (first off due to the last on from stand-by) I rushed to train, made connection and got to Riccione at 4am…Hotel had sold my room but moved me next door for night…slept from 4:45 til 6am.
Rushed to TIC to find it closed til 8am. Got my packet at 8am and rushed to declaration…they took pity on me since this was my only event and because of my tale and rushed me to the competition already in warm-ups. got 2 throws then competed.
While I did not qualify, I was just happy to stay awake. the 16 lb shot felt like a 35 ln weight! w\Worst throws of the season but it was still great to get the chance with all I went thru. BTW, Riccione is a wonderful town!!!!
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