Vicenza, tribute to Paolo Rossi with a 60 meter mural on the Everest Tower – Football

On the day he would have turned 68, Vicenza paid homage to Paolo Rossi, its honorary citizen, by unveiling a 60 meter long mural dedicated to him. The work, created by the Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra, is located on the south face of the Everest Tower in Viale Torino and looks towards Monte Berico.

Kobra: “An image that celebrates the footballer but also the man”

The former striker, who died prematurely on 9 December 2020, was portrayed jubilant with open arms wearing the national team shirt with cheering fans behind him. An iconic image of his career as a footballer and also symbolic of the man, capable of almost always giving a smile to everyone. “Paolo Rossi was a symbol of passion, commitment and humility”, underlines Eduardo Kobra. “Representing him in a mural is a way to celebrate not only his sporting talent, but also the human values ​​he embodied.”

An idea born in 2021 to redevelop the Everest Tower

The idea for the mural was born in 2021 when they wanted to renovate and redevelop the skyscraper, symbol of the economic boom of the 1950s. And the cultural association Wallabe thought of carrying forward the project, in partnership with the Vicenza-based engineering consultancy and training company Imprendo Srl, and also thanks to the collaboration, among others, of Lanerossi Vicenza himself, of the Paolo Rossi Foundation and the Aic.

Altobelli: “Paolo deserves this work, he was a symbol and an example”

The inauguration ceremony, in which Rossi’s wife, Federica Cappelletti, was present, was attended, among others, by two of his great friends, Antonio Cabrini and Alessandro Altobelli who wanted to remember him like this: “We came to greet Paolo once again As well as being a friend of ours, he was the symbol of football for many years. And we all love him. He was a magnificent goalscorer, an exceptional man, he deserves all this He had the smile that always distinguished him and he never let you understand what state he was in… We in the national team had a great relationship, and we demonstrated it on the pitch. To win a World Cup you have to be friends first and then footballers.”