Paola Egonu’s unexpected confession left everyone baffled: so the champion spilled the beans about what happened.
The mere fact that she landed in A1 that she was not yet of age speaks volumes about her incredible talent. Her palmares, then, only confirms it: between Supercups and Italian Cups, MVPs and Champions League, she has won everything a bit. It is no coincidence that she is one of the best volleyball players currently on the international scene.
After a brief stint at Vakifbank, Paolo Egonu has returned to Italy. She now plays with the Vero Volley Milan team and proves every day that she is a champion. Only sometimes it is not enough. It is not enough to “protect” her from certain risks. This is what emerges from the interview published by L’OFFICIEL in its February issue, in which the opposite player from Cittadella touched on a wide variety of topics. She did not limit herself to talking about sports, but delved into far more slippery terrain, such as that relating to women’s rights.
Thoughts went, first and foremost, to the women victims of men’s blind fury, such as Giulia Cecchettin and Giulia Tramontano. “It scares me, so much,” admitted Egonu, when asked what impact the news of feminicides had on her, “There should be a greater sensitivity on the issue, trying to understand why some facts happen, investing on educating. I’m lucky, as far as my experience is concerned sports is a protected environment…but when I think about what happened to these girls I feel helpless, we women can be a united chorus of voices, try to make ourselves heard, yet sometimes it’s not enough. It’s very sad. “
Paola Egonu crushed mercilessly
Then, as you can easily guess, the axis of discourse shifted to gender equality in sports. And there came out a confession of the kind that hurts just reading it, let alone living it firsthand as Paola.
“In my direct experience,” the champion said when asked if she has come across men who have tried to prevaricate her, “there are more men who advocate. But there have also been those who crush. Finding someone who listens to us and understands after a bad time is what I wish for everyone.”
“In my opinion,” Paola Egonu added further, “gender equality cannot be there, at least not 100 percent. One above all, motherhood. A female athlete at a certain point in her career has to decide whether to stop, move forward or take a step back. Take it or leave it. It is our decision, in this we are free. “