Stan Perkins, the masters official who lost the last WMA prez race, offered some wisdom to fellow Aussies traveling to Riccione for this week’s World Masters Athletics Championships. These notes came after scoping out the place in March. He concludes happily: “Cost are reasonable and standards of accommodation, food and transport are acceptable. It is recommended that people learn some basic Italian as the locals speak primarily their native language and some have no English at all. This does not stop them as they talk continuously, wave their arms and smile a lot. Lovely people.”

Other advice came from Riccione natives, including this exchange of posts on TripAdvisor.com.
But what I like most in the run-up to Riccione are the profiles of athletes set for the world meet.
Meet Haradhan Garai of India, an M50 racewalker who went door-to-door seeking donations to pay for his trip to Italy.
Meet Thomas Callender, an M75 sprinter in Canada.
Meet the team from Trinidad & Topago, which includes 400-meter god Ralph Romain, now in his 70s.
Meet the Malaysian contingent, who have apparently forgiven WMA for yanking the world meet from Kuala Lumpur in 2003.
Meet W50 multi-eventer Rita Hanscom of San Diego, who describes her favorite workout.
Meet W45 world champion high jumper Martha Mendenhall of Tacoma, Washington.
Of course, all 9,000 entrants at Riccione have a story to tell. I hope to learn more about you while watching from afar. I can’t attend the world meet this time around, but I hope you’ll share your stories! If you have Net access at Riccione, email me your meet experiences, good and bad. I’ll withhold names, if need be.
Meanwhile, enjoy Stan’s report to the Aussies:

REPORT ON VISIT TO RICCIONE
Venue and Competition Aspects
In mid March I attended a WMA Council meeting in Riccione and whilst there made some notes and collected some items that may be of interest to athletes who intend to attend the 2007 WMA World Stadia Championships.
Firstly it should be noted that Riccione is part of a continual community that hugs the seashore, and you pass quickly from one town to another without really noticing it. The region is described as the RIMINI region (Province) and it can probably be compared to the Gold Coast but without the highrise buildings or the beautiful beaches.
The areas we are interested in are Riccione where the official Opening ceremony will take place and where the majority of accommodation is located, Misano Adriatico where the second track is located and the walks course is situated and San Giovanni in Marignano, the location of the third track. When inspected the main track was under complete renovation and many of the throwing areas have not been established although we did see where they will be located.
The second track was recently refurbished and was in good condition as were the support facilities for throws and jumps. The third track was also being renovated extensively and should be good by the time of the championships. There is no doubting the commitment of the local government to ensuring acceptable quality facilities for the competitions.
The walks course is in Misano Adriatico on the beach promenade. It is a flat 2km lap course and there are adequate change room and shower facilities adjoining the course at a local football club. In addition this course will not be far removed from most accommodations. Viewing areas and access look good.
The cross country races will take place at the Riviera Golf Club, a privately owned course that is a resort location. The course will comprise 2 laps at 2.7km and one lap at 2.6km. The surface is mainly grass with some dirt track and small pebble areas. The course will be able to be run entirely in spikes. There are some gentle uphill areas with one steeper downslope. The start and finish are in the same area with the course
being described as wide. There are good viewing areas for supporters and athletes.
Shuttle buses will run continuously, with their start point being the Railway Station. They will loop to take in all the stadiums and other courses.
It should be noted that the athletics officials and organizers are very experienced and at this time the WMA Stadia and Non Stadia Managers do not foresee any problems.
However with an expected entry of more than 7,000 athletes there will be pressures not experienced before in our competition and things may change as time goes on.
Certainly the LOC has a much more practical understanding of the number of officials
required and they are planning to have sufficient to meet all the needs of the events.
Travel to Riccione
There are quite a lot of options available but there is no easy direct alternative. I travelled via Qantas to London Heathrow but had difficulty in getting a connection through heavy bookings with the only alternative being to fly into Milan. That is a long way from Riccione and the connection is via train. This is cheap and fast travel but when you are carrying bags and already having completed a long flight it is also rather inconvenient.
Instead I chose to fly with British Airways and had to transfer across to Gatwick by bus (easy as there are buses very 15 minutes and the journey takes about an hour) at a cost of 33 pounds return. I then flew into Bologna airport and was met by a van and taken by the A4 motorway to Riccione. The transfer took just about an hour. There is also a fast train connection that is about 7 euros and takes less than an hour.
The other alternative that I will look at taking next time is to fly into Rome and then take a domestic flight to Rimini which is basically a local airport. There are easy connections by road, rail and bus to Riccione and the rest of the accommodation areas.
Whatever route is chosen you will find Italy is a reasonably easy country to travel within and the train service and bus services are good quality and efficient, as well as most reasonably priced.
Hotels
Accommodation hotels in Riccione and along this strip of coast are just everywhere. The standards are below what we would expect in Australia and below those some would expect for this type of area. However it must be emphasized that the accommodation in this region is aimed directly at the holidaymaker. No latest
style communication links, hardly any provision for computer links and fairly basic bedding and room furniture. When I questioned one hotel owner he stated simply ‘People come here to holiday, lay on the beach, swim in the sea and wine and dine. They do not come here to work!’
Having said that the hotels are comfortable, very reasonably priced and close to everything. The hotel that Brian Travers asked me to look at will provide a fridge to every room, it is located right in the heart of the town, one block from the beach, probably a 15 to 20 minute walk to the main stadium and on the bus route. It provides good quality food and the layout with the swimming pool and associated area was very good. All in all I cannot foresee any real problems with the accommodation that is on offer, however I do stress that most of the hotels were closed when I saw them (they open April through to end of September).
Restaurants/ Food Places
As you would expect from the holiday resort precinct there are eating places everywhere including take-aways and snack bars. The restaurants are numerous and they tout hard for trade. Prices were very good and the quality of food, particularly the pastas and the pizzas – first class. Cost for a family size pizza was about 6 to 8 euro. Only the best of meals exceeded 15 euro. However this could change when the holiday season starts but I do not think it would change much due to the massive number of outlets that abound.
Shopping
Supermarkets and corner stores carried a wide range of product and the prices were most reasonable. Bottled water in particular was very cheap if bought in a carton lot.
Fruit and vegetable outlets carried really good quality produce and the prices were good value.
For the clothing shoppers this area is one of the fashion leaders in Italy and there are fantastic shops with just about anything you would want on sale. Prices were clearly displayed. Shopping for clothing and accessories is obviously a major business in Riccione.
Entertainment
This is a full-on holiday resort so there are things to do everywhere with plenty of attractions, sporting activities and nightclubs that seem to go all night. There are theme parks and plenty of things to just look at – including all the beautiful people (both sexes).
The beaches are cleaned each day by machinery and during the day the beach almost disappears under deck chairs. Unusual but the way it is in this part of the world.
Safety
There was nothing that I saw that could be interpreted as a threat to your feelings of safety. Apart from the usual precautions (bag-snatchers and pick pockets) I suggest this is a safe environment for our athletes and their supporters and family.
CONCLUSION
This should be an enjoyable host location for the championships. Cost are reasonable and standards of accommodation, food and transport are acceptable. It is recommended that people learn some basic Italian as the locals speak primarily their native language and some have no English at all. This does not stop them as they talk continuously, wave their arms and smile a lot. Lovely people.