Language
English
Abdon Pamich, Olympian and exile from Fiume, protagonist of the fiction "The Marcher"
Sport was one of the spheres in which exiles from Julian, Fiume, and Dalmatia sought redemption after the traumatic abandonment of their hometowns and the difficult reintegration into the social fabric of an Italy exhausted by the Second World War. The exodus was a repository of stories of rebirth and resilience, desperation and failure, retracing one's steps and emigration. In recent years, RAI has drawn on these stories, whose protagonists often left written traces of their experiences through poignant autobiographical testimonies or in fictionalized form. In 2024, "The Rose of Istria" (adaptation of the novel by Graziella Fiorentin) was broadcast to coincide with Remembrance Day. Who's afraid of the bogeyman?) with the final scenes set in a refugee camp with extreme realism, in 2025 “The little girl with the suitcase” (based on the book of the same name) told the story of Egea Haffner, the little girl from Polesine immortalised in a photograph that became the icon of the exodus, and this year the literary source was the autobiographical book by Abdon Pamich edited by Roberto Covaz Memoirs of a walker (Image Library, Pordenone 2016).
It is precisely the famous Olympian from Rijeka, now ninety-two, who appears in the opening scenes of "The Walker – The True Story of Abdon Pamich," directed by Alessandro Casale and sponsored by the National Association of Venezia Giulia and Dalmatia. A flashback then takes the story to Rijeka in May 1945, when the retreat of the Germans fools the inhabitants of the capital of the Carnaro region into thinking that World War II is over. Shortly thereafter, the Yugoslav occupation begins, aimed at annexing Rijeka, along with Venezia Giulia and Zara, to Tito's nascent communist regime. OZNA agents rage, there are interrogations and disappearances, and the Pamich family experiences this climate of terror and uncertainty firsthand. Eventually, the head of the family, Giovanni Pamich, takes advantage of a pass he has obtained to collaborate half-heartedly in the collectivization projects of the Titoist leaders and travels to Milan, confident that he can restart his business there. Faced with mounting difficulties, young Abdon and his older brother Giovanni also decide to leave, with a daring nighttime march that ends in Trieste. Realizing their father's financial difficulties, the two brothers move to the Refugee Collection Center in Novara, where they also attempt to resume their studies. The demeaning and depressing atmosphere of the CRPs, the prejudices that often accompanied the arrival of refugees, and the solidarity that developed in these challenging contexts are clearly and engagingly depicted. The depression into which Abdon risks sinking, faced with the uncertainty and closed doors he continues to encounter along his journey, has been a challenge for countless Adriatic exiles, who find themselves disoriented, uprooted, and at the mercy of events. The support of his brother and the reunion with the rest of the family, who have found accommodation in Genoa, significantly improve the situation, but even in the most difficult situations, a characteristic of the people of Exodus emerges: dignity. It was in the Ligurian capital that Abdon, between one precarious job and another, met his future wife and confidently embarked on a career as an athlete. The 50-kilometer walk became his specialty, in which he would win Italian and European titles, but above all, Olympic medals: bronze in Rome 1960 and gold in Tokyo 1964.
The film ends with modern-day Abdon Pamich continuing his march until he returns to Rijeka, his hometown, fulfilling every refugee's dream.
Lorenzo Salimbeni
The film can be viewed freely on Rai Play:
