This guy has a very special spark. We found and interviewed him with my colleagues from Cbc ten days ago knowing nothing about his story, just because he was passing by us. We were justified, in case you ask: we’re here in Milan to cover the economic, political and social aspects of the Olympics. We have dozens of colleagues super skilled in every kind of winter sports in the four locations of the Games.

That afternoon, he was roaming through the Olympic Village in Porta romana, just landed, surrounded by other teammates. We were looking for stories, and a Brazilian group dressed with ski suits instlantly hooked our attention. But there actually was just one star shining in that group of six-seven guys, and that’s why we pointed the microphone and the camera on him.

It was one of those vox populi interviews, when you try to smell the mood. What’s your name?, we asked finally. “Pinheiro” , he replied. “But I suppose you don’t know me”. Well, that was true. “Yet”, I read in his eyes.

A week and a half later, I spotted the headlines and – boom – a Brazilian to-be-champion had just won the gold medal in giant slalom. I looked at the face in the Tv and…yes. There he was.

As a journalist, I thought: if we only knew. We shot a couple of questions, nothing more. And now he was the new gold medalist! The first Brazilian in winter Olympics. This chance won’t easily come to us again.

But, as an Italian, I couldn’t help but think of Alberto Tomba, our ace in the ’90. Like Tomba, Pinheiro is good looking, self confident and – though half Norwegian – he comes from a sunny country (well, Tomba is from Bologna, not much sun there, but mountains neither). Not only. They both have a magnetic personality. In a few words, let me borrow Trump’s payoff, he can make skying great again.