Overwhelming solidarity at the Ciccio Riccio Run 2026: special dedication by Carlo Calcagni
Not all victories can be quantified with time. The most significant ones emerge in gestures, relationships and the ability to make sport something that goes beyond mere competition. This is the most authentic meaning of the Ciccio Riccio Run 2026 (Run4Leo), which took place on Sunday in the evocative setting of Villa Neviera delle Cantine Due Palme, in Cellino San Marco (Brindisi), an emblematic place of the area and perfect for hosting a day dedicated to sport and values.
First to cross the finish line was Colonel Carlo Calcagni, an athlete of the Italian National Paralympic Athletics Team, who completed the course in 25 minutes and 31 seconds along a track of about 8.5 kilometers, made even more challenging by the presence of unpaved sections. A significant technical and physical test, which once again shows how limitations, very often, are only mental. Yet Calcagni himself was quick to clarify the most authentic meaning of his performance: “It is not a sports victory. It is a victory of solidarity.”
Words that go beyond the result. Because that victory Carlo wanted to dedicate it to Jonas, a child who is facing an important battle and who will have to undergo experimental treatments abroad. An extraordinary network of solidarity is moving around him and his family, made up of people, associations and initiatives that show how much the community knows how to tighten up when there is a real need. But the greatest victory, the one that remains imprinted, is another and it is concrete, measurable, vital: 40 blood donations collected thanks to the presence of the bloodmobile of the ASL of Brindisi, in collaboration with the AVIS of Cellino San Marco.
Forty gestures that are worth more than any medal. Forty chances to save lives. Forty examples of genuine humanity. This is where sport is elevated, becomes an instrument of unity and an engine of change. The Ciccio Riccio Run thus confirms itself as an event capable of going beyond the competitive dimension, transforming itself into a meeting point between sport, territory and solidarity. The large number of participants, the enthusiasm of those present, the involvement of associations and volunteers made this day something more than just a run: a strong, shared, necessary message.
Carlo Calcagni, once again, proved that you can run to win, but above all to give a greater meaning to each step. Because in the end, time stops. Solidarity, on the other hand, keeps running.
