Guests of AUTelier, the solidarity fashion outlet where some young adults with autism work, we had the opportunity to participate in the presentation of the book Autism sport inclusionedited by Fabio La Malfafor Luni Editrice.
It is a work in which La Malfa, a judo master with great experience, has collected many testimonies, both from other coaches and from autistic athletes and their parents: the result is an intense, engaging and often moving text, where sport emerges not only as a simple physical activity, but above all as a powerful force capable of transforming and improving people’s lives.
“My dream was to create a judo school for everyone”, says maestro La Malfa, “from children to the elderly (even eighty-year-olds), with integrated courses for disabled people”. The Tomita Judo School was born in Rome in 2000 from the project of three great friends: Fabio, Alessandro Possagno and Italo Zeppieri.
The school’s objective has always been to respond to everyone’s physical and sporting activity needs through judo: with particular attention to children of all ages, nationalities, social conditions and to the people most exposed to risks of marginalization. It is therefore also an educational task that promotes a community experience that tends towards the maturation of the personality.
Integration thanks to sport for all
In the first pages of the book we read the dedication “to all the families who too many times have seen their children’s right to sport denied”: Fabio La Malfa reiterates how “sport is a human right that must be guaranteed to everyone, and diversity is a precious resource for society.” Concepts confirmed so much by Giovanni Malagòpresident of CONI, and by Luca PancalliPresident of the Italian Paralympic Committee who wrote the preface to the book.
All the stories collected there confirm the validity of La Malfa’s intuition, which demonstrate how sport can break down barriers: this is how true social inclusion is promoted, almost in a natural and spontaneous way. If you then consider that one of the main difficulties of people with autism spectrum disorder is in relationships and contact with others, reading this book can only offer unimaginable perspectives.
The meeting with La Malfa was enriched by further contributions, such as that of the judo master Aldo Piattimember of the scientific committee of CondiVivere Foundation: his Bu-Sen school in Bresso recently celebrated 50 years and, in his case too, dealing with disability has guided his sports project. He says that, shortly after opening the school, he decided to accept two children with Down syndrome into his courses: he was still an inexperienced teacher and the decision was made with a dose of recklessness, but he felt that the road to inclusion could pass through sports practice. And even in his case the facts proved him right.
La Malfa’s book also has the merit of showing how concrete integration and social inclusion can also be achieved through other sports, such as karate, rugby and artistic gymnastics: the various testimonies collected demonstrate how sporting practice, which requires passion, commitment, effort, leads to always positive results, even extraordinary and unthinkable in some cases.
He confirmed it Alessandro BascettaHead of the FIR Promotion and Participation Lazio – Integrated Rugby: for medical and psychology professionals it was impossible for autistic children to be able to play rugby. When they saw his Takiwatanga sports association with their own eyes, they couldn’t help but ask him how this was possible. “It’s a question of involvement and feeling part of a group”, explains Bascetta: “I am convinced that initiatives of this type are necessary to improve the social fabric in which we live”.
Design, together, a better future
With this subtitle of the book, La Malfa reiterates the idea that sport must be for everyone: if this represents the common thread of the stories, what each of them has in common is the intensity of the shared experiences, with the emotions and depth of those who write and who often bring out a difficult and tiring life path. However, the value of the sport, which allows people with disabilities to face their difficulties to achieve greater autonomy. As well as the crucial role that teachers always have to help in these improvements.
Among the contributions, the words of stand out Susanna Tamarowho tells with great sincerity his personal journey of growth and overcoming autism thanks to martial arts. The writer explains how discipline, the obsessive repetition of gestures and the clarity of commands helped her gain self-confidence and develop a fundamental balance to face life’s challenges. Also Nicole Maussierresearcher and university professor, confirms that sporting inclusion for autistic people is possible, underlining the importance of adequate training for coaches.
La Malfa’s text therefore demonstrates how, through sport, it is possible to build a better, more welcoming and inclusive society, where barriers can be broken down and where diversity is seen as an asset. His book can also be a stimulus for all those teachers, educators and professionals who share this ambition.
The cover photo presents the Judo masters of the Tomita school: the 4th from the right is Simone, a boy with Down syndrome
