Tony Leonardo's Collection of Ultimate Frisbee Writing
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2001 Paganello

2001 Pasticiotto

2001 College Nationals Dirt

2001 National Champions Carleton

Beach Ultimate Digs In

2001 Westchester Summer League Top 20 Rumors

2001 Purchase Cup

2001 Hingham

Village Voice Spec Piece

2001 U.S. Club Nationals
Open Preview
Women Preview
Open
Women
Mixed
Photos

2001 Turkey Bowl, CT

Festivus: South Bend, Indiana
Janus: Brooklyn, New York

Interview with Sam O'Brien

2002 Paganello
Final Writeup (Paga)
Final Writeup (UPA)

Interview with Gian Pietro Miscione (Jumpi)

2002 Yale Cup

2002 Boston Invitational/ Club Easterns

2002 Worlds Preview
Women
Open
Mixed
Masters

 

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INTERVIEW WITH GIAN PIETRO "JUMPI" MISCIONE

This was written for UltyLife.com

In anticipation of the forthcoming Paganello 2002, the ever-popular Italian beach Tournament, we have interviewed the visionary founder and living link to the happy spirit world between the Beach and our fondest Ultimate dreams.

If you've ever been to Paganello, you've already seen the world through Jumpi's eyes.

1) Tell us about the past, present and future of Paganello.

Well, the past vision for Paga was, above all, a "weekend on the Beach with some good friends". The team in Rimini was by far the most southern team in Europe -- we had to drive at least 500 km to play at any tournament. So when the rest of Ultimate Europe was still freezing, here it was Spring. We loved to go to tournaments, we had the Beach, we loved to play, eat and party at the Beach, one of us owed a Beach-zone and another one, a little hotel. So why not ask some friends to join the party? This was the simple philosophy at the basis of the first Paganellos.

But since the beginning we wanted to make the party as big as possible. I remember inviting teams from Canada, Finland, etc. to the first edition: crazy and stupid idea 10 years ago, now they are queuing up for being here in 2002.

The present can be seen as most of the 10-years-ago-dreams come true: a competitive and spirited world tournament in Rimini, 1200 people on our Beach right where we started playing 15 to 20 years ago, a global event consisting not only of ultimate, but also serving as a catalyst for other tournaments all over the continent and in Italy too. Ultimate is on national TV and in newspapers and Italians start to know Ultimate and understand its Spirit.

2) How do you think Paganello's success has brought about the rise in Beach Ultimate tournaments?

Beach Ultimate is becoming a new sport and we're starting a Beach Ultimate Lovers Association (BULA -- find them at http://www.beachultimate.org). There are very few things we dreamt about 10 years ago that didn't come true.

3) What are some of your favorite Paganello memories?

The Houston kazoo is one of the things I love to remember about last year's Paganello and the concrete image of Paganello's success: one of the best, competitive US teams come to Italy and produced a kazoo, a fun, silly thing, with the Paganello name on it, just to celebrate at the end of the game.

But we don't want to turn the good old things away: the grilled fish at welcome party, the dinner all together, the final ceremony…. the spirit is the same, everything is simply bigger. Of course there are many things that are different and maybe worse, as Paganello is still a party with some friends, but there are so many people now that you can't know them all and maybe that "family-feeling" is lost. But I think we have gained more than what we lost.

4) How do you keep the uniqueness of Paganello fresh for everyone?

The internationality of this tournament was, is, and always be the most important thing, the driving force of it all. Here you can talk, play, dance and party with people from 20 different countries. For many people it's a chance they can have only a few times in a lifetime.

This year I saw a guy from Rimini (he wasn't a frisbee player), talking to Jim Parinella about the Boston Celtics at the welcome party...this is Paganello: it's two people who would never have had the chance to meet otherwise, talking on the Beach, eating "saraghina" and drinking Sangiovese.

5) What are some of your plans for Paganello in the future?

So the future is firstly to maintain and improve the Paganello standard, pay more attention to details, add more comfort for players, more and more of anything! And particularly for growing under the aspect of sponsors and communication (there's so much to do), without losing sight of the Spirit of Ultimate and all the things that make it special: Paganello is the demonstration that this is possible, that these things can go well together, despite what many frisbee players thought and still think.

Four basic directions for the future:

1. Making the *Tournament* better, i.e. increase the quality of fun, ultimate. comfort on the Beach.

2. Making Paganello more and more a city-event that Rimini people love and wait for

3. Working for making ultimate popular in Italy, using Paganello as promoting event

4. Take the Paga experience onto as many Beaches as possible, mostly to those places (South Europe, South and Central America) that are the natural sites for this sport, because the most famous and beautiful Beaches are there and because there's an incredible amount of energy stored in those countries, ready for ultimate.

6) Jumpi, give us the Word!

The beach is a special place. It is between dream and reality. You feel you are different as you step in the sand. I think you get to feel more natural, like when you are a child. You get to play right by the sea, in front of an endless horizon, without shoes, without…

This was written to help promote Paganello.

 

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