20/04/2017
The first edition of Verbier Solidaire was a major success! We are really happy that everybody could enjoy this beautiful day in Place de Médran in Verbier.
Around 5:00 pm we started with a small presentation, where Franco Romagnoli (the creator of Verbier Solidaire) announced the anchorman and the honoured guests, and also thanked all the people for being there, as well as those who made everything possible, especially mentioning Lorene Michellod and Astrid Colonna, whom together with Franco, formed the organizing committee.
Then he gave the microphone to the presenter Dominique Le Glou, who after an emotional speech and having presented the guests Juan Ignacio Maggi and Jean-Yves Michellod, lead to the screening of the documentaries.
The first turn was the "Challenge Himalaya" where saw see the images of the odyssey of Juan Ignacio Maggi towards the highest motorable road of the world, in Khardung La (5359 masl), India. He cycled more than 400 km in 11 days of adventure, pedaling on his adapted bicycle, through the wild paths of the Himalayas.
In conclusion, and surrounded by applause, Juan Ignacio could tell a little bit about his experience to the public, with the translation of Astrid Colonna. "'The zone', in sports psychology, is when an athlete is immersed in what he does and all his actions become excellence. It's when all the stars have aligned. Today I can define a day in "the zone." It's a perfect day! "He stated. Then he concluded with his phrase "What’s difficult we can achieve it, the impossible we must try it."
Then we continued with the screening of the documentary of Jean-Yves, "Son Mont-Blanc", showing his ascension to Mont-Blanc, assisted with canes and a team of professionals with whom he summit the mountain on May 7, 2009, and then skied down with his adapted skies.
Once the film was over, Dominique Le Glou commented on the film, and then gave the word to Jean-Yves, who stated: "It is a very beautiful day with family and friends. Their support from the beginning was very important, being my family, my friends, the sport and my love for life, who pushed me to overcome this situation. It was a very emotional moment to have returned to Mont-Blanc."
Dominique closed the conference adding: "It is very important to highlight the actions of people like Juan Ignacio and Jean-Yves. How they inspire others. They are not "adapted athletes", they are great "athletes", and I believe that the world should unify these concepts so that there are no more differences and that we all have the same possibilities ", with a prominent claim to courage and overcoming the limitations, that come to us in certain moments of life, and how these examples show us the way to surpass them when they appear.
Then Téléverbier offered an aperitif to create a space to exchange with the guests. An incredible atmosphere where in a more personalized way, the public was able to talk with the athletes and share a nice moment.
When we finished in Place de Médran, we went to Pub Mont Fort Pub at 7:30 p.m., where there was a second screening of the documentaries, and while eating and drinking something, people could also exchange with Juan Ignacio and Jean-Yves.
In addition to the awareness that was conveyed to the audience during the event, and the strong inspirational message that our guests of honor shared, we are happy to announce that thanks to the contributions of the community and the Pub Mont Fort, we were able to raise donations for CHF 1363.10, which will go to the foundations we supported at Verbier Solidaire: Fundación Jean Maggi (Argentina) and Loisirs Pour Tous (Switzerland). Thanks to this contribution, more people with disabilities will have access to the magic of sports.
From Verbier Solidaire we are very overwhelmed and we want to thank everyone for having participated. A special mention to the companies and local organizations that contributed to the realization of this event: Office de Tourisme de Verbier 4Vallées, Téléverbier, Mountain Hub, Pub Mont Fort, Hôtel de la Poste Verbier, Alpybus, Al Capone and ARP Architectes.
And so we conclude with great happiness Verbier Solidaire 2017! This is just beginning, we are looking forward to having you with us next year!
