The tennis player proudly claims his Italian identity. The champion becomes the face of an Italy united by sport, beyond ethnic origins
It’s time to end a discussion that has lasted far too long. Jannik Sinner is Italian, he has declared it and demonstrated it several times. He’s not Austrian and doesn’t feel like one, period.
A few days before the ATP Finals in Turin (9-16 November), the number one in Italian tennis has granted ainterview with the director of Sky SportFederico Ferri. Between a smile and a memory, the South Tyrolean champion uttered a sentence that silences all the (sterile) controversies: «I am very happy to have been born in Italy and not in Austriaor elsewhere, because this country deserves much more, even than what I’m doing. We have the structures, we have the coaches, we have the players and we have lots of different mentalities. Differences are our strength.”
Words that couldn’t be more proudly Italian than that. Sinner, who grew up in the mountains of San Candido, in Alto Adige, not only wanted to reaffirm his ItaliannessOften questioned by a certain ethnic-linguistic prejudice fueled by certain bad press and “fans” unworthy of such a champion, but also sent a message of strong unity and sense of belonging to the nation.
Identity beyond borders
It must be admitted that theSouth Tyrola land of borders and linguistic coexistence, has always had a complex relationship with the concept of “Italianness”. German, Ladin and Italian are spoken here, we belong to multiple cultures and identities, and we are often labeled first for our origins rather than for our belonging. Just as happened with Sinner, the most sensational case given its media exposure.
And instead, the calm tone and confidentiality of Jannik it is precisely those characteristics that make us appreciated abroad, that give an idea of mature and elegant Italianness. Far from “Nordic coldness”. A boy from the Dolomites who chose to feel profoundly Italian, not by convention, but by conviction. When he says «Italy deserves much more», he is evidently speaking as a citizen as well as an athlete. AND he speaks as a young man who believes in a nation capable of uniting through talent, discipline and diversity.
Sport, in this sense, becomes a national glue, a space in which differences do not separate at all, but enrich.
The comparison with Alberto Tomba
In the eighties and nineties, the great skier Alberto Tomba was an undisputed symbol of Italianness: loved from North to South, idolized as a folk hero. Tomb it represented a bold and somewhat reckless Italy, but united in support. Sinnerhowever, is the opposite: silent, concentrated. Dedicated to impeccable physical preparation, as required by today’s very busy professional tennis calendar. Yet, this very way of being reflects a new idea of Italianness – sober and concrete. In this case, however, Italy is divided into typhoidblinded by the ridiculous (even if there is very little to laugh about) prejudices about Alto Adige.
Despite his dedication and extraordinary successes, not everyone embraced him with the same warmth reserved for «Tomba la bomba». Maybe because he does not embody the “classical” Italianness made up of gestures and words (here’s another prejudice). But Sinner doesn’t care. Like Djokovic, he doesn’t try to please. He plays to win, but he plays for Italy, he gives everything for Italy when he represents it. It is less flashy than TombaCertain, but it embodies the seriousness of a nation that wants to grow on a sporting level and beyond.
Sport must unite Italy
In his words — «We have the structures, the coaches, the players, and many different mentalities. Differences are our strength” — reads one modern and mature vision of Italy: a nation that grows by enhancing its local identities. Sinner who feels proudly Italian contributes to making all South Tyrolese/South Tyroleans feel Italian, «in diversity».
Being Italian does not mean sharing the same dialect, but recognizing yourself in a horizon of history, culture and common values. And if Sinner declares himself “proud to be Italian”, Italians must be proud to have Sinner.
