Back to my tournament, the guy's victory was a sharp example of how life's promises of success can turn into the most vile lies, because a few months later he would die in a car accident. In the meantime, my long awaited comeback turned out to be a lie as well, as my joints would soon conspire to put a quick end to that illusive parenthesis. However, this marked the beginning of my career in Poomsae. Not necessarily a happy one, but at least a totally different story. Yeah stories. Not fairy tales. Painful stories; moving stories; very long stories; unbelievable stories. True sport is a huge compendium of these. And no fairy-tale is Carlo Molfetta's bio. Not everybody knows this wasn't his first Olympic participation. 8 years ago he was in Athens. He was a beast, maybe the best already. But in the preliminary round, Fate made him cross his path with a true legend in the making: Hadi Saei from Iran, then Gold Medallist in both Athens (-68Kg) and Beijing (-80Kg). Carlo underestimated his opponent and went down.
Later on, a 4 years wait would not be a sufficient punishment, as in 2008 Carlo's clinical ordeal had already begun. His knees underwent 4 distinct surgeries, keeping him far away from China. So, 3 more years had to pass before he could start a new adventure from scratch. But then again, his race to London began with a false start. He was immediately defeated 10-11 by the surprisingly on fire Gadzhi Umarov (RUS) at the first 2011 Qualification Olympic Tournament, the transparency of which was affected by the lack of electronic body protectors. Continental Qualifications told a totally different story, and Carlo easily stormed through the tournament gaining his pass for London. At the end of the day, he was wearing a T-shirt reading <<Sorry for being late>>. The rest, you already know, it's been a spectacular, breathtaking Olympic Tournament conquered in that August 11 that my Facebook status had already called "Molfetta's Day" the night before.
Since then, I've gone through the whole final match a dozen times, each time equally suffering and rejoicing. But the one thing that keeps giving me the shivers even when I'm not watching the fight, is the epic word that closed the match by judges' decision. Winner by SUPERIORITY. You see, it was no single hit; no lucky kick, not the score, not a barren digit to give him the Gold. He got it because he'd been <<superior>>. To his opponent, yeah, but the echoe of this word is too strong to be restricted to this. Carlo's been superior to every obstacle a lifelong road had put against him, triumphing only at the very end of it. So my mind cannot but going back to both my old helmet and those childish words I wrote with unsteady hand more than 15 years ago. Because what at the end of the road was but a crown of thorns to me, now it's telling the story of a true king.
(Headline photo: edited official Olympic broadcasting photogram)
