Biography - Josefa Idem

"It doesn't get you anywhere arguing about things, but you do need to fight against uncontrollable causes. This is what you call political commitment."

Josefa Idem, was born in Goch, Germany on September 23, 1964.
She has been living in Santerno (Ravenna), Italy since 1990.

"Sports are about playing, and this must be constant. Once you lose that it's time to stop."

She began paddling when she was eleven. She always had a lot of fun training and competing.

Josefa graduated in foreign languages in Germany. She speaks perfect German, English, Italian in addition to scholastic French and the Romagnolo dialect.

"Motivation: is to look for mental barriers and break them down. To follow and demolish your own limits, working to reach your most self-expressive capacity."

Married Gugliemo Guerrini in 1990. Since 1989 he has been working with Josefa as her personal trainer. Together they have believed in each other and with a lot of faith have created something really great.

"Are sports a sacrifice? A sacrifice is not having food to eat, not having a roof over your head. Sports are a great pastime."

She moved to Italy in November 1988.

In 1992 she became an Italian citizen.

"Janek...was like dropping an anchor into the future."

On April 30, 1995 she became mother of Janek, whom she considers her most prestigious medal.

In May 2002 she was elected Sports Councilor for Ravenna.

"Do not accustom oneself to life's injustices, fight and be peaceful."

She has many interests and is involved in the fight against social injustices. She is Spokeswoman for A.I.S.M. (Associazione Italiana Sclerosi Multipla) and Emergency.

"I consider myself a lucky person, that I was able to choose a career that I love so much."

"I decided to enter politics because I felt that I had matured a lot in these last years and I wanted to give something back to my community."

"To be a good sports councilor doesn't mean that you have to be a good athlete or good at sports. You need to have a passion for people, the community and have very clear ideas about your mission."