The ANNOTICO Report
The competitors, who advance to the international event
through national
trials, compete in five categories: fastest pizza maker,
largest dough
stretch, freestyle pizza tossing and best pizza (traditional
and gourmet).
Washington Post
By Andrea Sachs
Staff Writer
Sunday, August 7, 2005
Q Can we go to the pizza contests in Italy? Who arranges
a trip like that?
Louis Ruggiero, San Diego
The World Pizza Championships in Salsomaggiore, Italy,
are like the
Olympics of Extra Cheese. About 20 international teams
will descend on this
tiny resort spa town south of Milan on April 3-5. "You
just wouldn't think
that such excitement over food would exist," says Amanda
Brandon, managing
editor of PMQ Pizza Marketing Quarterly, which sponsors
the U.S. Pizza
Team, one of two American teams,"and it's not just the
eating part, it's
the sports part, too."
The competitors, who advance to the international event
through national
trials, compete in five categories: fastest pizza maker,
largest dough
stretch, freestyle pizza tossing and best pizza (traditional
and gourmet).
PMQ Magazine has organized two tours -- one for the pizza
obsessed, the
other for those who want Italian sightseeing with their
pie. On the former
tour, guests travel with the team and attend the full
roster of
competitions, the highlight being the acrobatic pizza
tossing, which is
held at night at a disco.
The itinerary includes a city tour and two nights in Milan;
a day's
excursion to Pisa; the final banquet dinner; and pizza
samples. The latter
tour visits Milan, Venice and Pisa and spends a day in
Salsomaggiore for
three of the pizza competitions. Cost for both tours
is $2,500 per person
double, including round-trip air from New York. Space
is limited. Info:
662-234-5481, http://www.worldpizzachampionship.com/
.
If you don't want to travel en masse, the championships
are free and open
to the public (the gala requires an invitation). Salsomagigore
has various
lodging options, plus spa centers and upscale boutiques.
For information on
the area, plus details on the competition, see the town's
tourism Web site
at http://www.commune.salsomaggiore-terme.pr.it/
.
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