The “wizard” Pala and Italy’s skicross team back in Livigno before Chile: “We pulled off a big coup here, the athletes are ready”

Italy’s skicross team got back to work in recent days between Livigno and Bormio, in the heart of Valtellina, where on February 21 the finest page in Italy’s history in this discipline was written, with the gold and silver medals in the men’s Olympic event, won by Simone Deromedis and Federico Tomasoni.

The point, however, is that this group has grown enormously over the years, certainly driven by the man who went on to become the first Italian Olympic champion after already achieving a unique feat with the 2023 Bakuriani world title, in addition to his various World Cup victories and two second-place finishes in the overall standings. That is effectively the major goal for the 2000-born athlete from Val di Non in the 2026/27 season.

Tomasoni’s first victory, in Canada immediately after the Games, followed by a haul of podium finishes, including Jole Galli’s victories on the women’s circuit—all under the guidance of Bartolomeo Pala, the technical director of the Italian national team, who also oversaw the dry-land training in the “Little Tibet”; interviewed by Katja Colturi for MyLivignoTV, he discussed his athletes’ excellent build-up to the coming season, despite having to give up the first on-snow training block on the Stelvio because of the glacier conditions.

In Livigno, Deromedis, Tomasoni, Zorzi, Zuech, Piccolo, Rossi and the women’s team duo trained on the athletics track and in the gym: home athlete Jole Galli and Trentino native Andrea Chesi. There are also two new members of the staff led by Pala, both from Valtellina: Maicol Rastelli, a former leading member of the national cross-country skiing team, and Walter Compagnoni, who worked in alpine skiing for years, both serving as ski technicians. “We are back in Livigno, where we pulled off a big coup last winter; all the preparation for next season starts here,” explains the technical director of the skicross teams. “Three days of athletic work after the individual training the athletes did at home with their coaches.

We are assessing the situation before leaving for a month of skiing in Chile.”

The Italians will be based at La Parva throughout September, just like the alpine skiing speed specialists: “Jole Galli has made several changes,” Pala points out, referring to the Livigno native, who was disappointed by the Olympic event on home snow but remained extremely strong and consistent throughout the World Cup winter, still challenging for a place on the overall podium and winning again at Passo San Pellegrino. “Starting with her equipment, there are new things to test on the snow and she has plenty of motivation. She is fired up and already in very good shape.”