Published on
The head of Italy’s state sports broadcaster Paolo Petrecca resigned, RAI said Thursday, after his commentary during the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics opening ceremony became an international embarrassment.
Petrecca stepped down as director of RaiSport following his live commentary on 6 February, during which he confused Italian actress Matilda De Angelis with Mariah Carey and mistook the president of the International Olympic Committee for the Italian president’s daughter.
The errors sparked a revolt among RAI journalists, who withdrew their bylines from all coverage and announced strikes after the Games end on Sunday.
Petrecca had replaced another commentator at the last minute after that journalist accidentally revealed details of a surprise appearance by Italian President Sergio Mattarella in a pre-ceremony press conference.
What went wrong
Petrecca opened the broadcast by welcoming viewers to “Stadio Olimpico” — Rome’s main stadium — rather than Milan’s San Siro, where the ceremony was taking place.
When De Angelis, one of Italy’s best-known actresses, appeared on screen, Petrecca announced: “The show continues with Mariah Carey.” The US pop star performed later in the ceremony.
As the Italian president walked into the stadium alongside IOC President Kirsty Coventry, Petrecca told viewers they were watching “Mattarella and his daughter”.
Perhaps most galling for Italian sports fans, Petrecca failed to recognise five of the six Italian volleyball champions carrying the Olympic flame. He identified only Paola Egonu, while team captain Anna Danesi and four other Olympic and world champions went unnamed.
Petrecca also did not mention Milan rapper Ghali by name during his performance, despite the musician already making the headlines as a controversial choice who had drawn criticism from Italy’s far-right Lega party for his ongoing dispute with party leader Matteo Salvini and vocal pro-Palestinian views.
Journalists strike back
RAI’s sports journalists had already lost confidence in Petrecca, having rejected his editorial plans three times in recent months. The opening ceremony proved the final straw.
“We have all been embarrassed, no one excluded, and through no fault of our own,” the journalists’ union said.
“It is time to make our voices heard because we are facing the worst-ever figure of RaiSport in one of the most eagerly awaited events ever.”
Petrecca announced his decision on Instagram by posting an image from a Renaissance painting of Saint Matthew and a Biblical reference to the Last Supper, when Jesus told his apostles, “one of you will betray me”.
He did not explain who he believed had betrayed him.
Barbara Floridia, who chairs parliament’s RAI oversight committee, said she had summoned RAI’s chief executive for questioning on 11 March.
The botched commentary attracted widespread international media coverage, turning what should have been a showcase for Italian broadcasting into a public relations disaster for the state network.
Petrecca will remain nominally in charge until the Olympics end but has handed day-to-day control to his deputy, Marco Lollobrigida. Auro Bulbarelli, the journalist originally scheduled to commentate, will handle the closing ceremony on 22 February.