How far away Paris is, and how much that gold medal at the Paralympics weighs against all odds. Matteo Parenzan, a tennis player from Trieste, is almost a star on the banks of Trieste where the 56th Barcolana will start tomorrow. And he had never been on board a boat until now: “My sport is table tennis and I can see the sea from afar. The encounter with this element was beautiful, I had some fears which then disappeared in an instant – he says – even if I don’t really feel ‘at home’ when sailing”.