18.11.2024 - Important award for the volunteers Biathlon Antholz
The ‘Testimone del Volontariato’ award emphasises the great social value of volunteers.
The O.C. Antholz and Val di Fiemme of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 will be honoured in Rome.
The Olympic Organising Committees of Antholz (South Tyrol) and Val di Fiemme (Trentino), which are involved in the organisation of the next Olympic Winter Games Milan-Cortina 2026, will be awarded the ‘Il Testimone del Volontariato 2024’ prize on Tuesday morning, 19 November, at Palazzo Giustiniani in Rome, seat of the President of the Senate of the Italian Republic. This national recognition is being awarded for the fourth time and is presented each year to individuals or organisations (corporations, associations, clubs, etc.) that have excelled in volunteer work. Only one association per region is honoured.
‘The award of the Testimone del Volontariato 2024 to Antholz and Val di Fiemme recognises and appreciates the work of thousands of volunteers whose commitment makes it possible to organise international, national and local sporting events in various disciplines in South Tyrol and Trentino every year,’ explains Franco Danielli, President of the Jury of the Trentino|South Tyrol Region. Working on the organisation of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics is of course the absolute highlight of local volunteering in sport, but the award also goes on behalf of all the volunteers who support young athletes throughout the year and motivate them to carry out their activities. And of course also for the many volunteers who are active in the cultural and social sectors. Volunteering is indispensable in the autonomous provinces of Bolzano and Trento and provides crucial support for social life.’ An aspect that was also emphasised by President Sergio Mattarella during his visit to Trento in the spring, when the Trentino capital was declared the European Capital of Volunteering.
The history of this wonderful winter discipline has been written at the Antholz Biathlon Centre for over 50 years. Antholz is not only the cradle of Italian biathlon, but also of biathlon worldwide, with World Cup races being held here every year for half a century. The Antholz stadium is the only stadium in the world to have hosted six editions of the World Championships: 1975, 1976, 1983, 1995, 2007 and the last one in 2020. And in 2026, all Olympic biathlon medals will be awarded in Antholz. Over 1000 volunteers work in Antholz every year. The President of the Organising Committee Lorenz Leitgeb and Honorary President Rudi Wieser, who has always worked on a voluntary basis since the first World Cup, will attend the presentation ceremony in Rome.
The Fiemme Valley has organised three Nordic World Ski Championships in 1991, 2003 and 2013 as well as hundreds of World Cup races in the three disciplines of Nordic skiing, ski jumping and Nordic combined. Between 700 and 1,500 volunteers are regularly deployed, with 2,500 planned for the upcoming 2026 Olympic Games. Mauro Dezulian, Vice President and Head of the Nordic Ski Val di Fiemme volunteers, and the young Martina Piazzi, coordinator of the volunteers,
‘The award of the Testimone del Volontariato 2024 to Antholz and Val di Fiemme recognises and appreciates the work of thousands of volunteers whose commitment makes it possible to organise international, national and local sporting events in various disciplines in South Tyrol and Trentino every year,’ explains Franco Danielli, President of the Jury of the Trentino|South Tyrol Region. Working on the organisation of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics is of course the absolute highlight of local volunteering in sport, but the award also goes on behalf of all the volunteers who support young athletes throughout the year and motivate them to carry out their activities. And of course also for the many volunteers who are active in the cultural and social sectors. Volunteering is indispensable in the autonomous provinces of Bolzano and Trento and provides crucial support for social life.’ An aspect that was also emphasised by President Sergio Mattarella during his visit to Trento in the spring, when the Trentino capital was declared the European Capital of Volunteering.
The history of this wonderful winter discipline has been written at the Antholz Biathlon Centre for over 50 years. Antholz is not only the cradle of Italian biathlon, but also of biathlon worldwide, with World Cup races being held here every year for half a century. The Antholz stadium is the only stadium in the world to have hosted six editions of the World Championships: 1975, 1976, 1983, 1995, 2007 and the last one in 2020. And in 2026, all Olympic biathlon medals will be awarded in Antholz. Over 1000 volunteers work in Antholz every year. The President of the Organising Committee Lorenz Leitgeb and Honorary President Rudi Wieser, who has always worked on a voluntary basis since the first World Cup, will attend the presentation ceremony in Rome.
The Fiemme Valley has organised three Nordic World Ski Championships in 1991, 2003 and 2013 as well as hundreds of World Cup races in the three disciplines of Nordic skiing, ski jumping and Nordic combined. Between 700 and 1,500 volunteers are regularly deployed, with 2,500 planned for the upcoming 2026 Olympic Games. Mauro Dezulian, Vice President and Head of the Nordic Ski Val di Fiemme volunteers, and the young Martina Piazzi, coordinator of the volunteers,
