Ladispoli (Italy) (AFP)

Italian kitesurfers took advantage this week of the reduction in containment since Monday to set off again for the waves of the Mediterranean, ending a forced diet of almost two months.

"After two months, going out today at the end of the crisis phase (caused by the coronavirus pandemic) is fantastic, just fantastic, we couldn't wait anymore," said AFPTV Cristian Somma, co-founder of the Tsunami kitesurf school in Ladispoli, a coastal town north of Rome.

All individual and group sports were suspended in early March when the government decreed strict containment to stem the pandemic, which left around 30,000 people dead in Italy. The only authorized exception: running or cycling within a radius of 100 meters around your home.

Since Monday, the local authorities can authorize individual sports such as kitesurfing, provided they respect the safety distance.

Suddenly, even if almost all the shops and restaurants of Ladispoli remain closed, as well as the kitesurf school, the practice of this sport is again authorized.

- "Big family" -

"We took all the precautions, we came by van wearing a mask, I also wore one in the water, although, as you see, it is absolutely not necessary because the distance between each from us is 24 meters ", explains Cristian Somma.

"We hope to start working again as soon as possible, taking all possible precautions," added the enthusiast. "We will use radio headsets to stay as far away from our students as possible."

The beaches of the peninsula remain officially closed to lovers of long sunbathing on the sand, but you can already already walk by the water and soak your feet there.

"Finally we can come back after two months to practice our favorite sport, it's great, this feeling of freedom", enthuses Salvatore Falccovio, another co-founder of the Tsunami school.

"They did well to re-authorize individual sports because we are not hurting anyone, we are at a safe distance, we follow all the rules."

All their joy in finding their sensations, the athletes exchange smiles, pose for photos, finally freed from the shackles of the rules of containment.

"I missed sport, I missed the sea, I missed the company of my kitesurfing friends, we are a big family", confides Sergio Finocchiaro before setting off again to attack the waves.

© 2020 AFP