Comune di Sestriere

05/02/2012 6.45.28

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HISTORY OF SESTRIERE

The Commune of Sestriere has a very recent history since it was constituted ex-novo in 1934 (R.D. 18/10 ns. 1852) with the name of Sestrières (then in 1935 lost the "è" accented and the "s" final to the French language following the dispositions of the regime becoming Sestriere) on the territorial district of the ex Commune of Champlas du Col , of the ex Commune of Sauze of Cesana and the fraction Village of Sestriere, detached it by the neighboring Commune of Pragelato. Subsequently, in 1947, it was again reconstituted the Commune Sauze of Cesana that went out definitely "from the orbit" of Sestriere. In 1955 (on D.P.R. n. 611 of 3/6/55) were widened the confinements territorial of Sestriere to reach the actual 2580 hectares.

The name "Sestriere" derives from "Petra Sextreria", sixth stone that served from trigonometric point of reference in the measurement of the distance, in miles, from the nearest city, Turin. The history of the Valley of Susa and of the Val Chisone, it goes up again to the empire Romano of west in which it seems the first residences and the first ones has risen civil arrangements. The place suffered the invasions of the Vandals and the Saracens and subsequently belonged to the Delfinato and of France up to 1713 when the territories Escartone di Oulx Pragelato and Casteldelfino passed under the dominion of House Savoia, theater of struggles in the wars for the succession of Spain and Austria In this last it is been memorable the battle of the Assietta won by the Piedmontese against French in 1747. Some recoveries archaeological (unfortunately however disappeared in how much ransacked by the German during the Second War World) they allow to suppose that Annibale has passed really from the Hill of the Sestriere during his crossing of the Alps. Certain it is instead the date of the first one "roadway" made to build from Napoleone in 1814. It is of it testimony the erect obelisk on the occasion of the centennial (1914) that was demolished in 1950 (to make space to other buildings) and then reconstructed in 1987 in the street Pinerolo. The date is not certain, 1896 or 1897, however in that years the Swiss engineer Adolfo Kind (transferred in Turin for work) and his friends made their appearance on the Valleys next to Turin with the skis, that "roller skate from snow" that they seemed an amusing folly. Not even forty years later Sestriere, that seemed created on purpose from the nature to give notoriety to the new sport, it was an unique reality to the world in the field of the ski and the tourism. Pioneer of the tourist development of the Sestriere it was the Comm. Native Paul Vicenzo Possetto of the place, child of road worker, only residing family to Sestriere before 1930, that already in 1914 it started the construction of the "Baraccone", an Hotel of 20 rooms with restaurant that was completed, in 1921 after the First War World. Subsequently, in 1929, there was an amplification that brought the structure to a total of 70 rooms. In 1924 the Madonna's Chapel Regina Pacis was inaugurated, planned by the architect Carlo Carbonnet. From 1930 the Society Increase of the Sestriere, whose protagonists were the senator Giovanni Agnelli and his child lawyer Edoardo, gave the decisive impulse to the whole actual complex So, were born the 4 funivies that they brought to the Alpette, to the Sises, to Banchetta and to the Fraiteve; the famous towers were built, the luxurious Dukes of Aosta and the most popular Tower, the luxurious suiteses of the Principles of Piedmont, but also hotels of various categories Sestriere had become a great winter station that attracted for the modernity and the class of his structures an international clients of high-level and that, for his proximity to Turin and the facility of communications, made to hasten the classes I mediate and popular; to the Hill the middle class emergent goes by Balilla (Old Italian car); in truck and bus arrived the great groups after work of impassioned, precursors of the actual skis club. Besides a wise promotional politics added shiny with the great competitions as her "Six days international" that it disputed him on six different footsteps, then become her/it "Three Funivies." The world war 1940-1945 paralysed for well five years the tourist life of the Sestriere and it caused a lot of damage to the skiing fittingses but, gradually they could be restored with more modern tone and the movement taken back with great rhythm in the following years. The tradition of the great competitions continued in the postwar period: mythical it was the edition of the Kandahar in 1951 when Zeno Colò triumphed in the free descent on the slant of the Black Rio; and, then, Moltere, Duivillard, Schranz, Killy, the baptism of the World Cup. On that platform to the Hill the whole Gotha of the ski has passed

The rest is history of the modern ski , from that thrilling "double" of Alberto Tomba in giant and in slalom in the 1987, to the first nighttime slalom of defeated World Cup still from the phenomenon bolognese in 1994 And then still so many prestigious competitions like the World ones of the February of 1997 and the Endings of World Cup of Alpine Ski of 2005 up to reach the gotha with the XX° edition of the Winter Olympic Games in Turin 2006 and of the Paralympics.