The Tempio Sacrario degli Sport Nautici safeguards the memory of the great Italian water sport star players
Garzola, on the side of the lake which climbs up from Como to Brunate, is the location of Santuario di Nostra Signora del Prodigio, also known as Tempio Sacrario degli Sport Nautici, the water sports temple. Its position is one of the most beautiful in the whole Como area. On a natural terrace, it dominates the city and the lower lake basin, and its backdrop is the mountains around it. There is thus nothing random about its Como balcony definition, as a special vantage point from which to contemplate the beauties of the landscape and let the peace and quiet sink in. The sanctuary’s history dates back to 1915, when Monsignor Antonio Pagani brought the Madonna del Prodigio icon to Garzola and worked for the building of a religious building dedicated to her. It was not until the early 1960s that work actually began, however, and the building was completed in 1968. The most surprising side of the building is its modern architecture. Designed by architect Fulvio Cappelletti, the sanctuary’s shape explicitly conjures up a ship. This is entirely deliberate. The site’s symbols are all bound up with sailing and protecting sailors. Externally the building seems to be jutting out towards the lake like a large white sail. Inside, ropes, rigging and references to water make a visit to it a fascinating experience. Behind the altar, a large window tells the story of the finding of the Madonna icon.
However, what makes the sanctuary so unique is its lower floor, its temple to water sport – a large room devoted to the sport’s memorabilia and its heroes. Objects, photos, trophies and witness accounts tell of some of the most important events in Italian sport history: rowing – for which Lake Como is one of the most prestigious sites – sailing, swimming, diving, motorboats and water skiing. The objects all speak volumes of sacrifice and talent and the display cases are packed with the accounts of the athletes who took the Italian flag to the world’s most prestigious sporting events. All this has made the sanctuary a temple not only to the divine but also to the memory of those whose lives were linked to water and sport.
One of the events commemorated is the Bremen tragedy, when a Lufthansa plane crashed there on 28 January 1966, killing several members of the Italian national swimming and diving team: champions Bruno Bianchi, Dino Rora, Sergio De Gregorio, Amedeo Chimisso, Luciana Massenzi, Carmen Longo and Daniela Samuele, along with head coach Paolo Costoli and journalist Nico Sapio. This is one of the most painful episodes in Italian sporting history and left a deep mark on the water sports world. The memory of those who died lives on here alongside that of generations of champions who devoted their lives to water.
One of the Como area’s most beloved sportsmen is Filippo Mondelli, an Italian rowing champion who grew up on Lake Como. Mondelli died in 2021, at the age of just 26, and continues to embody talent, strength and determination. There is a display case devoted to him here, recording his extraordinary personal and sporting life. Halfway between lake and sky the water sports temple is much more than a sanctuary. It’s a place of collective memory in which tales of water sports continue to resonate with new generations.
