Roma, Città Sportiva - Global Rome: Changing Faces of the Eternal City - page 148

1908—encouraging real-estate speculation—mayor salvatore Rebecchini of the
Christian Democrat party accepted” (Kirk 2005, 196-197).
Thus, the DC stranglehold over Rome's city administration was a microcosm
of its unchallenged role in national government that led to stagnation, corrup-
tion, and minimal reform. The result was an eruption of violence, from the late
1960s onward, in the form of student and worker protests and a reaction from the
extreme right.
italia Novanta
italian society's unrest continued long beyond the hot summer of 1968. in 1978,
former prime minister aldo moro was executed by the communist Red brigades.
This was followed, two years later, by the murder of eighty-five citizens in a bomb
blast at bologna station which was eventually attributed to extreme right-wing
forces. sport provided welcome relief from the violence of the “years of lead,”
with the 1982 world Cup victory giving italians good reason to celebrate. more-
over, the victory made a significant contribution to the country's successful bid to
host the 1990 tournament, the final of which would be held in Rome.
preparations for the event included the modernization of existing stadiums
and the construction of new ones across the peninsula and an accompanying
program of infrastructural development. from the original estimates, costs rose
astronomically in order to “satisfy the hunger for bribes that regulated the rela-
tionship between big business and the political class” (triani 1994, 81). another
snapshot of the type of corruption that had developed since the 1960s, it was a
warning of the impending political earthquake to come following the exposure
of the tangentopoli scandal and the subsequent Clean hands inquiry. “italia 90”
provided a huge opportunity to move money. irregular, direct transfers of state
funds to families and businesses, the creation of a massive tax avoidance system,
the construction of “world Cup facilities” in cities that would not host a single
match were accompanied by lax building controls and dangerous working prac-
tices that left 24 workers dead and 648 injured (martin 2011b, 206).
as the showpiece arena that would host the final, Rome's stadio olimpico
received a face-lift and a roof, for the first time in its history. a new station was
opened at nearby Vigna Clara, but it functioned on only eight days during the
tournament after which it was closed and never reopened. expected to alleviate
public transport pressure in this area of the city once the event had been con-
cluded, it was supposed to have been connected to the Nomentana station, but
the track was never laid.
2009 world swimming Championships
a number of swimming pools were built across the capital theoretically for the
2009 world swimming Championships, but with a certain legacy in mind. The