An unforgettable evening with great champions and sports personalities was experienced at the Country Club Hotel in Capannori, celebrating the 26th edition of the Sports Loyalty Award founded, organized, and presented by Valter Nieri. "The Night of the Golden Sphinxes" offers a unique opportunity each year to experience unforgettable emotions and stories from those who have made sports history, with the commitment to involve numerous honorary members who support the initiative, including honorary president Stefano Gori, Panathlon Lucca president Lucio Nobile, and Provincial F.C.I. president Pierluigi Castellani.

Cycling was the protagonist with three heavyweight figures from its most glorious history: Giuseppe Martinelli, one of the most victorious technical directors in the world. An interesting episode was recounted by the Brescia team manager in front of Fanini, dating back to the late 70s when the Lucca patron, before founding his professional teams, was already a sponsor at just 22 years old for San Giacomo. A cycling Martinelli who as a young man wore those colors and proposed himself as a good sprinter. "Fanini promised me 500,000 lire if I won the Cecina circuit. I won, knocked on his door, and collected. The strange and perhaps unique thing in those years was that a sponsor offered to donate a prize that was usually promoted by the cycling society's president."

Martinelli, like Ivan Quaranta, current Italian track speed coach, and Walter Brugna, who achieved many prestigious successes in Fanini colors in Capannori, were welcomed by the Sports Loyalty Award audience with a standing ovation because their names remain indelible in the sport's history. Quaranta, who was a junior world champion, recalled his time in Fanini colors and his numerous road victories as the sprinter he was, including six stages won at the Giro d'Italia. Walter Brugna demonstrated explosive strength on the track: his was a career on the rise in the middle-distance sector, winning the bronze medal in Ghent in 1988, silver in Lyon in 1989, and gold in Maebashi, Japan in 1990, all while wearing Fanini colors.

Sports champions, both current and from the past, paraded at the Country Club, sharing their more or less recent stories. Narratives that are sources of inspiration, lessons in managing challenges, and an opportunity to understand the social and cultural dynamics of their time. For the Municipality of Capannori, it was a special evening appreciated by Mayor Giordano Del Chiaro, Sports Councilor Gaetano Ceccarelli, and Council President Luca Menesini. Among those honored were boxer Patrizio Oliva, fencer Elisa Di Francisca, rhythmic gymnast Milena Baldassarri, football legends Roberto Donadoni and Beppe Bergomi, one of the most titled volleyball coaches in the world, Giovanni Caprara, and volleyball promise Margherita Meoni, a nineteen-year-old from Livorno, signed for the next season by Offanengo in A2. Moments of emotion accompanied the memorial awards to the unforgettable Gigi Simoni and Aldo Biagini, presented to Beppe Bergomi and Roberto Donadoni respectively.