(Feb 14) – Francesco Gambella was not a ‘normal’ child. At the age of three months two heart attacks proved his strenght and taught him to face life with a unique attitude.
He began his activity as a canoe sailor at the age of twelve, and the craze for this sport has pushed him to reach important goals since he was a young boy and despite his early age weakness.
His spirit of adventure drove him to venture upon extreme adventures, all brought to an end, on his high rank canoe and on a high seas kayak. Being sensitive to invalids’ problems, he often dedicated his performances to people who have serious health conditions.
Solidarity and the will to live, together with adventure and challenge, are the protagonist of his autobiographical book ‘Onde d’Africa’ (African Waves) written with Marco Mezzano.
The whole story follows Gambella’s life, from his tough childhood to the challenges around the world.
Canoeing, his sport, allowed him to demonstrate his strength as well as
the desire to explore and discover, to travel the world and to know with different cultures.
“Onde d’Africa” describes years of challenges and solidarity, showing how far a ‘different’ kid can go with a canoe to bring a message of peace and serenity,Because sometimes the barriers built around “disabled” people are made of psychological limits and not by objective ones.
Francesco, born in Rome 39 years ago, has a life to be told. The two cardiac arrests at the age of three months following by an intestinal obstruction caused by a serious malformation of the intestine. But nothing stopped him to begin the activities of kayaker at the age of 12 years and the passion he has for the sport led him to reach important goals since he was a child and to undertake extreme high adventure, both with canoe and sea kayak, and all accomplished.
The book ‘Onde d’Africa’, released on January 19th, was presented last Saturday in Padrongianus, in the province of Olbia, at the presence of Gambella and Mezzano.
During the meeting authors have told many fun facts and was also
aired a short documentary on a major project related to the recovery of AMREF street kids in Nairobi. (Gil)
WHO ARE FRANCESCO GAMBELLA E MARCO MEZZANO
Francesco Gambella was born in Rome on December 27th, 1973. He successfully completed many canoeing challenges around the world. Coach of the Italian Canoing Federation Canoeing, since a few years he is one of the AMREF ambassadors. He lives in Olbia and work as a flight attendant. Mark Mezzano, thirty-one years old, has collaborated with the newspaper “L’Unione Sarda” and other regional magazines, he lives and works in Olbia, in the Marketing and Communication Office of the Port Authority of Northern Sardinia.
