Turin (Italy) (AFP)

In shorts and a T-shirt in the parking lot of his building, Luciano Romoli, an octogenarian from Turin, gives gym lessons to his neighbors, who follow them on their balcony or behind their window, at a good distance because of coronavirus.

"We had the idea, since we have to be stuck at home, to do a little exercise, otherwise when it's over, we will be stiff. So we thought of doing gymnastics exercises with music, to relax a little ", explains to AFPTV this former mechanic at Fiat, 80 years old and who lives in the capital of Piedmont (North-West).

Looking relaxed in his white T-shirt and his face partially hidden by a mask, Luciano offers simple exercises, mainly stretching which can be easily performed, including by beginners.

"The exercises that we do here are the exercises that we usually do with the group with which I walk: movements of the arms, feet, head and that's it," sums up this jovial and dynamic man. .

The silhouettes installed at the windows and balconies of his modern red brick building, who carefully follow his instructions, show the success of his course of about twenty minutes.

"People put themselves on the balcony, put the national anthem at the start, then I start gymnastics and when I finish, we repeat the national anthem," he said.

Even if he seems to show an optimism to any test, Luciano is nostalgic for his life before the arrival of the coronavirus: "Hopefully this virus will soon let us walk in our neighborhood as usual", sighs- he.

Italy has introduced drastic containment measures since March 9 to counter the new coronavirus, which has already killed more than 22,000 people on the peninsula, especially in the north of the country in Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna and Piedmont.

© 2020 AFP