Sergio "Gigi" Sala (born 11 January 1958 in

Casatenovo Casatenovo ( Brianzöö: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region of Lombardy, about northeast of Milan and about southwest of Lecco. , it had a population of about 12,700. Casatenovo borders the followin ...

) is an Italian former semi-professional footballer and climber.

Football career

Sergio started his playing career at San Giorgio, a club based in Casatenovo. He played as a centre back (stopper). Sergio_Sala's_team

In 1980, when he was 22, he was noticed and recruited by the club Associazione Sportiva Sant'Angelo. He played two seasons with them and then began to get noticed by bigger clubs such as

Atalanta Atalanta (; grc-gre, Ἀταλάντη, Atalantē) meaning "equal in weight", is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia (region), Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene (mythology ...

, A.C. Monza and

Como Como (, ; lmo, Còmm, label=Comasco , or ; lat, Novum Comum; rm, Com; french: Côme) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Its proximity to Lake Como and to the Alps has m ...

. However, during one of his last matches with A.S. Sant'Angelo, he broke his

meniscus Meniscus may refer to: * Meniscus (anatomy), crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure that partly divides a joint cavity * Meniscus (liquid), a curve in the upper surface of liquid contained in an object *Meniscus (optics) A lens is a ...

, forcing him to retire from football.

Climbing career

After Sala's retirement, he became a climber. He was the first person to reach the summit of the mount Resegone in 1985 and the summit of the

Grigna The Grigna is a mountain massif in the province of Lecco, Lombardy, northern Italy, with an elevation of . It is part of the Bergamo Alps, and it has two peaks, Grignone or Grigna settentrionale, the higher, and the lower Grignetta or Grigna ...

in 1988. In both these occasions he reached the summit using only his hands and without any protections. After these achievements he became very famous in the

Brianza Brianza (, , lmo, label= Brianzöö dialect, Briànsa) is a geographical, historical and cultural area of Italy, at the foot of the Alps, in the northwest of Lombardy, between Milan and Lake Como. Geography Brianza extends from th ...

region. From 1984 to 2013 he was one of the alpine guides of the CAI of

Barzanò Barzanò ( Brianzöö: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about southwest of Lecco. Barzanò borders the following municipalities: Barzago, Cassago B ...

Personal life

He is one of the best friends of the singer Francesco Magni (1949–2021). He and Sergio Sala made a few songs together singing in the Brianzoeu dialect. The most famous one is "".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sala, Sergio 1958 births Living people Italian footballers Association footballers not categorized by position