by Roberto Chiodi
In the large ballroom of the Continental Hotel we are at least 500 for the Final Awards GalaThe ladies in evening dress, the men strictly in tuxedos. Tomas de Vargas Machuca, patron of Hero-Era, the company that organizes the Beijing-Paris, opens the most awaited chapter, the cups sparkle under the spotlights, the big screen shows wonderful images of this extraordinary adventure.
The awards ceremony will take up the entire soirée, alternating with the various courses of the dinner. «But I think it is right to give the first recognition", says Tomas, «to a crew that deserves the title of “Hero Eroics”. They managed to complete this 14.789 km race with the little Fiat 500!»
A thunderous applause breaks out, everyone clapping their hands, waving in such an affectionate greeting that it erases the memory of all our efforts due to the inevitable inconveniences, due to the fear that we would not be able to bring “Lucia” here, in front of the Opera. But we did it and the recognition is this beautiful cup with the inscription “The True Hero Award”, the authentic Hero award, which really makes us proud. The four of us go up on stage: with me the Minister of Tourism of San Marino Federico Pedini Amati (owner of the 500 and at the wheel both at the start and finish), the San Marino entrepreneur Steven Muccioli (main sponsor and travel companion from Baku to Ankara) and Fabio Longo (a Roman dentist who never got out of the car to respect the race rules: one member of the crew must always be the same if you take turns on board). In addition to the splendid dedicated cup, we were awarded the bronze medal and the “Finishers” plaque, awarded to all the crews who managed to cross the finish line.
Friends of the 500, see you in Garlenda! Images, stories, sensations and memories to share with you all. And of course with the participation of this Cinquino that accomplished the historic feat of starting from Beijing and after 37 days of rallying arriving in Paris amidst the admiration and amazement of all.
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