The Italian event of the year, the IPO Sanremo, which will be held from 27 April to 7 June, is just a few days away, and the program is full of goodies for the occasion.
Yes, because this year at the final table commentary, Jack Bonora will be joined by Giada Fang, who, in recent years, has become the Italian voice of poker as well as one of the best-known and best-loved players on the national scene.
This is a choice that combines experience, know-how, and brilliance on both sides. In the afternoon, we had the pleasure of speaking with both of them and here is the result!
Giada Fang's IPO premiere
She has commented and still comments on many tables, first and foremost those of the most prestigious European tournament, the European Poker Tour. IPO is another significant experience that will enrich an already respectable curriculum:
"I have commented with many well-known personalities in the field: Topkapias (Andrea Borea, ed.), Alberto Russo, Pierpaolo Fabretti Luca Pagano, Riccardo Lacchinelli...
The funniest ones? Maybe they're less famous than the others, but they're really hilarious: Giuseppe Lovasto and Andrea Rinaldi. Outside the traditional channels, I happened to comment together with Zamp, David Zampini, and several others."
Beyond the Ordinary
Compared to the past, when there were not too many alternatives to television, nowadays, viewing takes place through different channels and platforms, necessarily changing its nature:
"The way I comment changes significantly depending on the context. But let's say that, with experience, I have acquired automatisms that allow me to modulate my register according to the need. In general, I always try to comment in a way that is understandable to a broad audience.
It's true that, for instance, there are many more young people on Twitch, and the audience is, on average, better prepared. Still, we mustn't underestimate the occasional people who follow us and those who are only recently approaching the game."
The importance of being Giada
EPT festival episodes, and that's recent news, are also broadcast on Dazn, contributing even more to identifying Giada, in the common imagination, as the mother voice of Italian poker:
"Do I feel the weight of having become the Italian poker voice? More than a burden, it is a pleasure. With time, you get used to it. Then there is also the fact that having been sponsored for several years and having collaborated on so many projects, from coaching to TV programs, popularity is not something that scares me.
I have many people who have been following me for years and who have written to me privately to congratulate me, telling me that it was a pleasure to be on commentary since some of them started playing when I was still doing the courses on Intellipoker. Some tell me, "Giada, you are my legend!" which makes me happy and, at the same time, makes me feel a bit old 🙂 .
I'm delighted to join the big IPO family, which, after the end of the IPT era, has become the most prestigious national title ever. It's no coincidence that it also has the word 'Italian' in its name. The commentary with Jack Bonora? It will be a pleasure to work alongside him. We are talking about a great professional in the sector."
Set of Jacks
Moving to the other side of the fence, we asked Jack Bonora to tell us about the three key moments that characterized his (decades-long) experience as a poker commentator:
"Let's start with the period of the poker boom on television. My first TV table as a commentator dates back to 14 June 2009 in Saint Vincent. In those years, there was an uncontrollable euphoria; poker was at its peak popularity, and everything was show business.
The second was when I commented for the first time with faced-up cards because, let's not forget, in the early days, people commented without seeing the players' cards, and, especially in those years, it seemed incredible to peek at the hands in real-time.
The third turning point came when delay was introduced. I had already noticed the attempts at the interaction between those at the table and those following a few meters away, but the switch was not so immediate."
Comparing Eras
"Before there was fashion, being a poker player was trendy, now it is not. What distinguishes the modern poker era is that concreteness has replaced the ephemeral because we lived through a phase in which it was enough to win a tournament (net of objective merits) to grab a sponsorship and become a media personality.
Today, the level is infinitely higher, so much so that if we were to absurdly take today's players back 15 years, there would be no match. In other sports, however, if we put a basketball team from 2024 and one from 1984 in front of each other, the modern one would win hands down due to its much higher physicality.
What are other differences from the past regarding commentary at the TV tables? In 2009, players often came in, from Gaspare Triolo to Giovanni Rizzo via Paolo Luini, Alice Nuvola, and many others: I always got on well with everyone."
The Winning Couple
"Most of the comments I made were with Cesare Antonini, and there is a deep friendship with him apart from the working relationship. This highly affects understanding, especially when the final table lasts long hours.
Ours is deliberately a national-popular commentary; we both feel that the technical analysis is more up to the listener than us. Also, it is because everyone thinks they have their way. The real difference in commentary is the roles. The first voice must lead the second, and in turn, the second must be able to keep up.
Giada? She is exceptional, very strong at the table, and pleasant on a human level. Compared to the commentary with Cesare, where the boundary between first and second voice is blurred precisely because of the experience and affinity matured over time, with Giada, it will be possible to deepen on a technical level in an impeccable manner, and then I will have to ask the right questions to enhance her role even more."
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