Four thousand athletes; 500 from Italy, the largest delegation; 33 sports disciplines; 26 participating countries from 3 continents; 275 million invested by the Government, through commissioner Massimo Ferrarese, to build or renovate sports facilities, another 100 million, also public, for organization and an additional 6 million from the Government for redevelopment interventions in Taranto; 3,000 volunteers engaged in various services; 2 ships (Aroya and Romantika) rented to host athletes. These are the key numbers of the twentieth edition of the Mediterranean Games, which will open on the evening of Friday the 21st at the Taranto stadium, where the closing event will also be held on September 3rd.
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And for the opening, there will be an important institutional lineup, with Italy represented by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, the Presidents of the Senate and Chamber, Ignazio La Russa and Lorenzo Fontana, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and several ministers. The Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Raffaele Fitto, will also be present, along with other heads of state and government.
This is the second time the Games, which have a 75-year history, return to Puglia after the June 1997 edition in Bari. The Games are a celebration of sport, an opportunity to emphasize the centrality of the Mediterranean and Italy’s role in a complex geopolitical moment, the chance, as Pope Leo said, to affirm “a prophecy of peace and brotherhood among peoples.” But Taranto is also betting on the Games to offer another image and a new narrative of itself: that of a city, despite being hit by the ex-Ilva cyclone, where the hot area will be shut down by order of the judiciary at the end of October, striving to envision a different future, combining the sea, the territory, and its ancient history with a significant sports facility heritage.
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Bringing this edition of the Games to fruition has been a marathon. Yes, because although awarded to Taranto in August 2019, the process really started only at the beginning of 2024 after commissioner Ferrarese took office in mid-2023. At that time, only 150 million had been approved by the previous Government, some renderings, and a single project, that of the nautical center, which later proved incomplete and had to be redone.
The work, therefore, practically started from scratch. Added to this, several months between 2023 and 2024 saw controversies and conflicts between the Government, the Puglia Region, and the Municipality of Taranto, with then regional governor Michele Emiliano accusing the Government of having snatched the Games from Puglia by appointing a commissioner. Reflecting on those events, the Minister of Sport, Andrea Abodi, noted: “We decisively changed the organizational and infrastructure axis. The spirit of these years began three and a half years ago with the Government’s installation and the awareness that something had to change.” Meanwhile, the Vice President of the EU Commission, Raffaele Fitto, recalling his time as Minister of Cohesion, added: “The choice of the commissioner, which was not simple at the time, represented the key to solving the problem.”
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