Athletics Golden Gala (06-06-2025)

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This time, due to some traffic on the city ring, I decide to take public transport. Upon arrival at Flaminio, I discover that the tram has been replaced by a bus: it takes me a while to find the stop, and I think the delays will mean I’ll see the meeting already underway by a bit. The bus is crowded, but no one seems to be heading to Golden Gala—if I wasn’t the only one, it was close The journey was faster than expected, but upon arrival, I realize I’ll miss a few jumps at 4.35m (women’s pole vault).

As expected, entry is quick—there’s certainly no queue, though I do struggle a bit to get my ticket scanned at the turnstile; it takes 4-5 attempts. For the first time at the Olympic Stadium, I get to my seat by going down instead of up: when I bought the ticket, I understood that the seat was low, but not so low. I worry my view won’t be great, but the track and platforms are reasonably visible; there’s only some difficulty with the landing areas for horizontal jumps and with the shot put (which is one reason I’d have preferred a higher seat). The issue, however, is that I can’t see the finish line, blocked by a scoreboard (first used for discus, then for high jump). Fortunately, there won’t be any particularly close finishes; even in the sprint events, the gaps will be clear.

As widely predicted—given the overlap with a  match of the national football team —the stadium is almost empty. Only the lower section of the Tevere stand, beneath the entrance where I’m sitting, and the lower half of the Curva Nord are somewhat full. The announcer repeatedly claims the stadium is filling up, but in reality, only a couple of sections in the Monte Mario stand near the finish line and a few near the shot put platform gather additional spectators. Some fans arrive in Curva Sud, where the high jump is taking place, but it remains emptier than the other side.

I reach my seat just as the jumps at 4.35m are nearly over: Bruni and Molinarolo cleared it on their first attempts, with only one needing a second try. The 4.50m height is cleared by all participants on their first attempt, except Molinarolo, who exits. At 4.65m, only three remain— maybe a too fast progression, unlike that of the high jump. Morris is the only one to clear it on her first try, while Bruni nearly does so on her first, succeeds on her second, much to the excitement of the section occupied by athletes from Fiamme Gialle. At 4.75m, only Morris succeeds; by the start of the television broadcast, she’s already alone. She manages 4.80m on her third attempt before stopping. Bruni’s attempt at 4.75m gives the impression she might make it, but I would read later that her second attempt, which I missed was even closer.

Meanwhile, the women’s discus throw—the event best viewed from my position—takes place. It’s a high-level event that builds momentum: Perkovic starts near 65m, but Altman will reach 69.21m, with seven athletes over 64m. To make the top eight already requires throws near 62m, leaving Osakue far behind: a foul, then 56.40m, then a disastrous throw she nullifies. There’s also the women’s triple jump, the only field event without Italians, and thus less followed. Distances are hard to gauge; you can only get a sense of proximity to the pit with the step.

With discus and triple jump concluded (and the high jumpers now entering the field), I consider grabbing something to eat, but notice that the final of the Palio dei Comuni is about to start, so I wait. I discover this time the teams hail from all over Italy, not just Lazio: the final includes Naples, Florence, and Turin, alongside one Roman neighborhood (Infernetto). Umbria takes a double win with Foligno and Orvieto. I quickly grab some food afterward, returning well before the start of the track events and high jump.

The first track event is the women’s 400m hurdles: without McLaughlin and Bol, it’s wide open. Folorunso, mid-second curve, is already among the pack, and on the final straight it briefly seems she could to win, but Knight pulls ahead decisively, though she secures second place. Seeing the winner’s time of 53.67, it’s clear hers is also strong: 54.21! Next are the men’s 1500m, where Frenchman Habz begins a streak of European victories. Riva stays with the pack, with a time that seems around 3:32 but turns out to be even better: 3:31.42.

Meanwhile, the men’s high jump begins. Tamberi tries to get energy from the crowd, but there’s too little of it. The starting height is 2.12m, and even Gimbo enters the competition right away—already a sign of his precarious condition. He clears 2.12m well and celebrates, though less enthusiastically than usual on the first height. At 2.16m, the bar already shakes; at 2.20m, he has no chance. After 2.23m, only five remain, including Sioli. Doroshchcuk clears 2.26m on his first try; three others manage it on their third. Sioli comes close but doesn’t succeed. The competition seems to wind down, but Woo reaches 2.32m. The Ukrainian reserves his final attempt, and the two advance to 2.34m as track events near their end.

Next is the women’s 5000m, the highlight race for Italy. Nadia Battocletti is the most cheered athlete at the announcement—even more than Tamberi. Seeing her up close, her thinness is striking, much more so than other long-distance runners. The pace is very high, and she stays attached, almost seeming to stroll effortlessly. By kilometer three, she begins to show strain; after 3000m, she starts losing ground to the top five but keeps a comfortable lead over the wavelight marking the Italian record. In the final kilometer, the record light approaches, but in the last lap, she overtakes two opponents, including Tsegay, while Chebet distances not just her rivals but also the first wavelight, marking the meeting record at 14:12, and closes within three seconds of the world mark. Battocletti finishes third, improves the Italian record by eight seconds (14:23.15).

Meanwhile, the field event I had the worst view of—the men’s shot put—takes place. You can tell if throws land between the 20m and 22m tapes but not how close they are to either; distances tend to appear longer. Fabbri’s third throw seems to touch 22 meters but is ruled a foul. On his fifth attempt, Weir achieves 21.67m to take second place (behind Walsh). Fabbri needs 21.65m to enter the top three for the final; his throw looks good but falls short—21.36m, moving him only from seventh to sixth.

The final field event is the men’s long jump. Distances are unclear not only in person but also on video, where you see 8 meters and then directly the world lead and meeting record—8.37m and 8.61m, respectively. Furlani’s first jump, despite the enthusiasm from people close to the landing area, doesn’t seem exceptional: I estimate around 8 meters, but it’s just 7.78m. After four jumps, he’s fourth with 8.04m, only 6cm from first. On his fifth attempt, he records 8.07m and enters the top three. In the final, Tentoglu doesn’t improve, and Furlani takes the lead with 8.13m, finally seeming poised for victory after many close calls. But Adcock, the Australian, still has his jump, which immediately looks strong—indeed, it measures 8.34m.

Meanwhile, track events continue: after the men’s 400m, women’s 200m, and 110m hurdles—without Italians and which I miss while trying to take photos—we arrive at the men’s 100m. This time, I decide to take pictures only during the presentation. The race begins: Brommell takes the lead and finishes in 9.84. Tortu stays with the pack, raising hopes for a long-awaited result, but instead records 10.19—a time the announcer still describes as good. The evening closes with the women’s 1500m: after the pacers drop out, the race turns tactical, with Ireland's Healy winning in 3:59. The podium is entirely light-skinned. Vissa falters, while Zenoni finishes with the pack, clearly improving with a time of 4:01.52.

Leaving is quick, and even the bus is nearly empty. The first thought that comes to mind is that the primary merit of the evening was sparing us from witnessing the national football team’s wreck, but it wasn’t just that. The balance is four second-place finishes and one third-place: 5-6 years ago, this would have seemed a distant dream; today, it leaves a bitter aftertaste because victory was missing. We’ve really taken bad abits.