THE NEW TROPHY

THE NEW TROPHY
The symbol of Marcialonga and its territory

Marcialonga chose to redesign the trophy addressed to its winners, getting inspiration from the new design of the logo. Above all, it was chosen to use a material with a natural and deep connection with the territory: wood.
The raw material was supplied by the Magnifica Comunità di Fiemme, a millenary institution that is still managing big part of local collective properties, including mountains, forests and pastures. Two types of wood have been used: spruce and larch.
Spruce is a very long-living plant and is the predominant tree of our forests. It spreads in a classy and smart way on the ground, filling up every free space. It represents the very soul of the trophy, meaning the logo of Marcialonga itself.
Larch is a very resilient and strong plant, a plant that is not afraid of anything. You can find it on open spaces and it works for the others with great generosity, in order to create favourable conditions. The larch was used for the base of the trophy, as a good wish for the roots of Marcialonga to have the same strong qualities.
The labels are made of spruce resonance wood, a rare and refined wood that you can find in Val di Fiemme. Its structure with no macroscopic flaws, makes it the ideal material for the construction of sound boxes; it is told that the renowned Stradivari came to these forests to select and purchase the best woods for his violins.
The two types of woods together create an extraordinary mix of strength and class, a real magical encounter whose connection to Marcialonga appeared to be undeniable.

The Doctor of Forestry Marcello Mazzucchi, besides illustrating the traits of the two woods, gave us an interesting and strongly symbolic comparison not only with Marcialonga, but also with the participants to the different competitions.
Trees are a wonder of Mother Nature: they are suspended between Heaven and Earth without moving, where every day they need to do their best to survive. In order to succeed, they have to think first of all about their roots that delve deeply and firmly into the ground; only once they are strongly attached to the ground the tree will grow. This is what happens to all of us, to the athletes and especially to the marcialonghisti (Marcialonga runners). We try to give our best, while training, during our daily activities and more generally in life. The roots of the trees are fundamental for them and correspond to our values; the more we are aware of it and they are rooted in us, the more we grow well and we are able to give our best.
The trees are the tallest organisms on Earth. They could easily look down on all the others, but they are very humble and keep on working in silence instead. This is also what big athletes do. Moreover, trees work together, they unite their strengths to grow bigger and win. This is also what sport teams do.
Besides, trees and Marcialonga competitors have two friends in common. The first one is the snow. Both are longing for it to come, as the athletes are thrilling to enjoy its presence and when the snowflakes gently fall from the sky and cover the forest ground, it nourishes and protects it and prevents the roots to freeze.
The other friend is silence, which prevails in the forest, nourishes our souls and is much appreciated by those who practice sport and Nordic ski.
Roots, values, commitment, humility, cooperation: trees and athletes have much more in common that it could be thought; these are the qualities that lead both to victory but, above all, to give their best every single day.
Finally, winners do not only get a trophy but a very strong symbol of this territory, of Marcialonga and of their true self.