The MultiSport Fisdir project stops in Acireale. At the Santa Marta and Santa Venera hospital, with the collaboration of the ASP Autism Center of Catania, the third conference of the project for the promotion and diffusion of sporting practice wanted by Fisdir and financed by the Tourism, Sport and Entertainment department of the Sicilian Region was organized . The project involves the nine Sicilian provinces with 38 introductions to sport for children with intellectual-relational disabilities. There are many disciplines which, depending on their inclinations, aptitudes and abilities, children can choose from: football, tennis, table tennis, horse riding, rowing, swimming, athletics, water polo, basketball, archery and judo. The speakers gave an overview of the benefits of sport in children, teenagers and adults with the autism spectrum, Down syndrome and in general with intellectual-relational disabilities. Marina Bellomo spoke about “autism spectrum disorders and sport”; Angelo D’Auria of “Down syndrome and sport”, Giuseppe, Luigi, Jeffrey, Eddy Quattrocchi “motor exercise as learning and development of intellectual and emotional abilities”; Giulio Polidoro “sports therapy: the discipline of swimming”; and Gaspare Majelli spoke about the “history of Paralympic sport and Fisdir”. Also present was the head of Child Neuropsychiatry of the Acireale hospital, Renato Scifo.
“After Palermo and Ravanusa, today we are in Acireale – explains Roberta Cascio, Fisdir regional delegate -. We want to extend the project to this part of eastern Sicily with an ever-increasing number of sports disciplines for children.” Claudio Pellegrino, Fisdir provincial delegate, underlines the benefits of sport for children with intellectual and relational disabilities which not only improve the quality of life in physical terms, but also in social and relational terms. Mirella Costa from the ASP Autism Center in Catania hopes that children can also play sports “outside the places designated for rehabilitation”.
In the video Roberta Cascio, regional delegate Fisdir – Claudio Pellegrino, provincial delegate Fisdir – Mirella Costa, therapist ASP Autism Center of Catania
