Walking Football, the new season kicks off

The third season of Walking Football officially got underway last night. A new chapter for the activity organised by the FSGC, it began with the first training session – and the related start-of-year fitness tests – at the Umberto Briganti gym in Fonte Dell'Ovo. Since last year the activity is no longer reserved only for over-50s with type 1 diabetes but is now open to everyone who is already 50 or over and interested in this new adventure. In addition, the success of the initiative has led to the training period being extended from autumn through to late spring, unlike the previous two years when sessions were held only during the three spring months. “The primary objective of this project is to give as many people as possible the opportunity to improve their health, to offer them a chance to socialise in a fun way while playing a sport they love – which is not something to be taken for granted once you reach a certain age”, commented the Federation’s SES Officer and project manager Andrea Zoppis. “On that note,” Zoppis continued, “we would like to thank the Diabetology Centre of the Hospital of San Marino for its now well-established collaboration in promoting the activity and for its willingness to carry out the initial and final tests on participants, both diabetic and non-diabetic.” At this first session, in fact, nurses from the Diabetology Centre carried out physical and aptitude tests on all players, measuring body weight, body fat index and waist circumference, and conducting a survey on their eating habits and levels of physical activity. The same tests will be repeated at the end of the programme to assess the progress made. In the first two seasons there has always been a general improvement, both physically and in terms of healthy habits, as well as a strong impact on social interaction among participants – something that is often greatly underestimated. In this respect, the number of participants has risen to 15, and the enthusiastic feedback received from those who took part in previous editions has prompted the Federation to extend the training schedule by a further three months, in order to provide greater continuity and pursue the aim of making this activity as popular as possible, including through participation in international exhibitions. In recent weeks, UEFA has also reiterated the importance of walking football for the entire European football community, issuing a toolkit to all member associations with guidelines on training and preparation, as well as a first draft of a unified international set of Laws of the Game. FSGC coaches Matteo Giardi, Thomas Berti and Mattia Rizzo, all with proven experience gained in recent years, will therefore be able to adapt their training methods to these international guidelines, making the game increasingly structured. This season, training will take place every Tuesday evening at the Umberto Briganti gym in Fonte Dell'Ovo from 19:00 to 20:00, and every Thursday morning on the artificial pitch at the Stadio di Montecchio from 11:00 to 12:00 (with changing rooms and showers always available for everyone, and sessions always overseen by FSGC coaches). Registration and participation are open at all times, even for those interested in attending only one of the weekly sessions. For more information, you can email [email protected] or call the FSGC directly on 0549/990515.

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