By Bernd Fisa
April 11 – Florence, Italy celebrated the lives and achievements of Stefano Borgonovo and Armando Segato, last weekend. Both men were former strikers for Fiorentina and Italy’s La Squadra Azzura, who lost their battle with neurological disease ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Borgonovo and Segato’s contribution to Italian football was honoured at a special ceremony celebrating their lives and achievements. At the event the Mayor of Florence, Dario Nardello unveiled two monuments in their honour and announced that two streets in the city of Florence would be dedicated to them.
The occasion saw a huge attendance from football fans and Florentine locals alike, as well as sports councillor Andrea Vanucci and high ranking football representatives including former Fiorentina and Italy Captain Giancarlo Antognoni, the current Viola midfield player Borja Valero, Fiorentina Team Manager Roberto Ripa and Andrea Abodi, President of Italy’s Serie B.
Speaking after the event Chantal Borgonovo, Stefano’s widow and Chairperson of the Borgonovo Foundation said: “Stefano was in love with Florence and vice versa. I am equally proud and happy at the same time. I had the time of my life in Florence so I was incredibly touched by the ceremony and the support of the city and the fans.”
A month ago the city of Como dedicated a square to Stefano Borgonovo. His home town of Giussano, close to Milan, named its stadium after the former Italian National Team striker. In Milan, a park carries the name Borgonovo, the player who in the nineties played with the Dutch world class trio Van Basten, Gullit and Rijkaard winning the European Cup Final in 1990. May will see the city of San Benedetto del Tronto name its stadium after Borgonovo.
Following Como and Florence’s recent honouring of his name it seems that now every city and club Stefano played for (Sambenedettese Calcio, Udinese, Pescara, Brescia will also honour the champion) want to pay tribute to the “born striker”(the title of his autobiography) who has become the sports world’s ambassador against ALS.
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