Bergamo, Italy, hosted the FCI World Team Championship for Rescue Dogs from 19 until 22 August 2010, under the aegis of the ENCI (Ente Nazionale della Cinofilia Italiana).

Giovanni Martinelli and his team « Alpini de Bergamo » gave hospitality to their guests in the Italian region of Lombardy on the occasion of a memorable World Championship.

We are running out of superlatives to describe truthfully the care brought by Giovanni Martinelli in preparing the event, the way he made the WC happen and the enthusiasm he raised among the FCI delegates. The Italian team that competed in the FCI WC got incredible results, proudly illustrating the work made with rescue dogs within the FCI.

The central-located Nembro stadium, as well as the other related sites used for the event, which all perfectly fit into the Lombard mountainous landscape, were perfect for such a competition. The area search took place in an entertainment zone close to Milan, in Pineta di Clusone. This is a sinous valley with a lovely flora : the perfect place for our area-search teams. Regarding the rubble search, an area of not less than 5000 sq meters had been specifically laid out in Ospitaletto – an unrivalled ground all over the world. Another zone, just as remarkable, was also put at the disposal of the experts in tracking in Valle di Tede Onorede. Fancy was everywhere, just imagine that the participants were flown by helicopters to the contest area and the officials and spectactors driven in cars specifically arranged by the Alpini. Our extraordinary trip came to an end when we reached a narrow valley where nice meadows, bushes and rocky areas covered with vegetation offered the dogs working conditions which were more than realistic.


The competing teams came from the following countries : Ukraine, Argentina, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Slovenia, Hungary and Italy, i.e a nice representation of FCI members !

Regarding the judges, the FCI Commission for Utility Dogs, chaired by the Dutch Frans Jansen, had appointed the Czech Wladimir Kutche and the Swedish Leif Sundberg to judge the obedience and dexterity sections. The area search was judged by Joop Meijer (Netherlands), tracking was evaluated by Walter Hoffmann (Germany) and rubble search by Alois Russegger (Austria)..
As FCI experienced professional judges, all of them helped the event happen smoothly.

The competition, where all the participants showed a clear sense of fair-play, raised suspense and performances ranging from satisfactory to outstanding were made throughout the whole event.

Out of the 20 national teams entered, 17 took part in the obedience and dexterity competition. The best results were obtained by Germany (area search) with 189 points, followed by the Czech team (rubble search), 182 points and Finland (area search) with 179 points.

The tracking contest was won, by far, by Italy ; with a total of 377 points, the country got the title of FCI World Team Champion.

In the area search, the competitors made it an exicting contest. At the end, the national Finnish team, with a faultless run, ended up first, with 439 points and was awarded the title of FCI World Champion. The runner-up was Italy which, with a total of 393 points, got the title of FCI World Vice-Champion. Germany was placed 3rd with a total of 387 points..
The rubble search contest was won by France which ended up by far ahead. With 422 points, the French team definitely outclassed seven other national teams and earned the title of 2010 FCI World Champion. It was followed by Italy, FCI World Vice-Champion which, with its 412 points, became the most performing team of the WC. Standing 3rd, the national Slovenian team was defeated by the vice-champion nation, being one mere point behind.

Italy was particularly brilliant being the most rewarded team and the country with the most participants. With one title of FCI World Champion and another two titles of FCI World Vice-Champions (area and rubble search sections), the host country clearly outclassed its guests !

Our Lombard and Italian friends made it a point to be excellent in other areas, beyond the sport competition. A helicopter was indeed made available throughout the event ; it took the officials and press representatives to the different working places, offering them an incomparable view of the site. They also did justice to their regional cuisine on the occasion of the different parties and receptions as well as during the event. The lovely cups and gifts had been selected and made with a lot of care. The list of guests of honour had been drawn up with precision and important personalities took part, i.e Antonio Sarti, Clara Poli, Eli Perdetti, Giorgio Prandelli, Fausto Carrara, Francesco Balducci and Dr. Wolfgang Zörner among others.