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Date: 17/04/2001 No. 57 - 2001
UEFA Champions League trophy hand-over in Milan
Real Madrid CF to hand back cup in ceremony involving seven Milan ‘greats’
It has become one of the UEFA Champions League traditions for the defending champions to return the trophy to UEFA in the venue selected for the final of the current campaign. This special ceremony will take place at noon on Thursday of this week, April 19th, at the Town Hall in Milan, the Palazzo Marino.
As captain of the Real Madrid CF side that won last year’s final at the Stade de France in Paris Saint-Denis, Manuel Sanchís will hand the UEFA Champions League trophy back to UEFA’s Chief Executive, Gerhard Aigner. It will be a special moment for the international defender, who will retire at the end of this season after almost 18 years in the Real Madrid first team.
Gerhard Aigner will immediately hand the trophy to the Lord Mayor of Milan, Gabriele Albertini, for safe keeping until this season’s final is played at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on Wednesday 23 May. They will be joined on the stage by representatives of seven Milan AC and Internazionale FC teams that have become champions of Europe in the past, namely Cesare Maldini (champion in 1953), Giacinto Facchetti (1964), Sandro Mazzola (1965), Gianni Rivera (1969), Franco Baresi (1989), Paolo Maldini (1990) and Mauro Tassotti (1994).
The delegation from the Italian national association (FIGC) will be headed by its commissioner Dr. Giovanni Petruzzi and the delegation from Real Madrid CF will be spearheaded by the club president, Florentino Pérez and Jorge Valdano, head coach when Real Madrid first entered the UEFA Champions League and now the Spanish club’s general director.
The ceremony will be attended by representatives from all four of this season’s UEFA Champions League semi-finalists who, naturally, hope to be back in Milan in May…
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