“I’ll explain one thing to you: I’m not special.” The Biella paralympic athlete clarifies this with her usual determination Nicole Orlando32 years old, in the documentary with an even more explanatory title, Nothing special (here is the trailer), broadcast on Rai 2 at midnight.
An unfortunately very late placement, immediately after the live broadcast of the opening ceremony of the Winter Paralympics of Milan Cortina 2026, expected in prime time from the Verona Arena.
Produced by Unicorn in collaboration with Rai Documentari and created with the contribution of the Ministry of Culture, the 52-minute feature film is directed by Alessio Di Cosimowho wrote it with Alessio Coccia to retrace the story of a woman born with Down syndrome and became not only Paralympic world championbut also a point of reference in civil society: in 2015 it was cited by the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella in his end-of-year speech as a virtuous example for the country: «Italy is full of people and positive experiences. Our thanks must go to all of them. They are well represented by some emblematic figures, I will mention only three, Fabiola Gianotti who will take over the management of CERN in Geneva tomorrow, Samantha Cristoforetti that we followed with affection into space, Nicole Orlandothe Paralympic athlete who won four gold medals”, his words, which left Niki (as she is affectionately called) and her family breathless.
Mattarella was referring to the fact that during that year, on the occasion of his first World Championships in Bloemfontein, South Africa, Nicole had shone in the 100 and 200 metres, the 4x100m relay, the triathlon and the long jumpwinning four golds and one silver.
«It’s a documentary that speaks to young people, families, teachers, athletes and anyone who has ever doubted themselves. It’s not just the story of an extraordinary athlete, but a collective invitation to overturn perspectives, to put aside clichés and to recognize that true normality is diversity. An intimate and universal storycapable of excite the audience Italian and international, and intended for television and streaming distribution”, highlight the authors.
In one scene Gianni Morandi asks her where she keeps the medals and she replies: “I’ll put them in Mickey Mouse’s drawer, my favorite place.” In addition to family members and coaches, and animated parts that convey the protagonist’s internal point of view, personalities from the world of sport and entertainment are interviewed such as Javier Zanetti, Milly Carlucci And Carolyn Smith.
Indeed, in 2016 Nicole participated as a competitor in the eleventh edition of Dancing with the starspaired with the professional dancer Stefano Oradei, finishing in fifth place in the final. In the same year he published with Piemme Forbidden to say I can’t do ita book co-written with the journalist Alessia Cruciani: a motto she has heard repeated to her since she was a child by her parents.
Her mother Roberta and father Giovambattista enrolled her at just three years old in the gymnastics club La Marmora – Team Ability Biella, where she began her sporting activity. After trying gymnastics and swimming, Nicole comes to athletics.
Sprinter specializing in the 100 and 200 metres, javelin throw, long jump and triathlon, Orlando (which has over 82 thousand followers on Facebook and 21,400 on Instagram) has won many world and European titles, to the point of holding international records. Beyond the medals, the documentary talks about everyday life, family, love, training, fragility and inner strength of a girl who doesn’t want to be defined by her condition, but by her actions.
Last January 13th Nicole she was among the torchbearers of the Olympic torch passing through Biella and commented as follows on social media profiles: «Being able to at least be part of the “surroundings” of the Olympics filled me with joy. I was neither the first nor the last to carry the torch, but just anyone, like everyone else, among others, without any distinction or prejudice. I hope one day that all athletes with intellectual-relational disabilities will be able to compete on these stages. For me it may be too late, but I will never stop carrying on this battle!
