Rimini, August 22, 2026 – “The meeting with the Holy Father is the greatest show after the Big Bang…,” says the bishop of San Marino-Montefeltro, Domenico Beneventi, to describe the day (photo). Who knows if Pope Leo listens to Jovanotti… Surely today’s day will remain in the history of Rimini and San Marino. 44 years after the visit of John Paul II and 15 years after that of Benedict XVI (who only stopped on the Titan and in Pennabilli), Leo XIV has ‘illuminated’ Rimini and the republic of the Titan with words of hope and courage, and simple gestures that went straight to the heart.
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A true marathon for Leo XIV, over 11 hours of visit starting from San Marino
It was a true marathon for the Holy Father. Over 11 hours of visit, starting from San Marino where he arrived by helicopter at 8:45. The first crowd greeting at the Torraccia airstrip. Along the route to the center, the Pope almost stops to greet a group of elderly people from a nursing home. “This is the last chance to see the Pope, we couldn’t miss it.” In Piazza della Libertà, 21 blank cannon shots welcome Leo. Among the crowd, a father holds out his few-month-old baby; the Pope does not just pass by: he holds him for a moment and blesses him. And he grabs the hand of a nearby boy. At Palazzo Pubblico (the government palace of San Marino) the Pontiff speaks of freedom as “a plant that must grow and bear fruit in all of us,” inviting “to be wary of those who present themselves in the name of freedom, but are actually slaves to power.” Then the meeting in the Basilica and the blessing to the crowd. Before the farewell, there is time to give him gifts: a ceramic plate made by disabled youths, a chalice, the sweatshirt of the San Marino team at the Mediterranean Games.
The Pontiff by helicopter to the nuns’ monastery in Pennabilli
From the Titan, the Pontiff reaches by helicopter the nuns’ monastery of Pennabilli, where he was a guest (as prior of the Augustinians) in 2005 and 2009. When he arrives, the table is already set for lunch by Sister Francesca and the other 14 sisters. For the Pontiff, typical dishes of Valmarecchia cooked by the nuns, who then give him a work of art made with their own hands.
From Pennabilli to the Meeting
From Pennabilli to the Meeting (video). Where 60,000 people welcomed Leo, the second Pope at the CL event after John Paul II. Welcoming him were the bishop of Rimini, Nicolò Anselmi, the president of the Region Michele de Pascale, and the mayor Jamil Sadegholvaad. The Pope visits the exhibitions on Saint Augustine and Léon Harmel and the Youth Village, making his way through the crowd, amid thunderous applause.
The Pope meets the most vulnerable
It’s not over, because after the speech to the CL people, Leo stops to shake hands and to bless children, elderly, disabled and the ‘sisters of pain’ Roseline Hamel and Nassera Kermiche.
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These are moments full of emotion, like those that come a few minutes later in the Cathedral, where the Pope meets the sick, disabled, detainees, guests of family homes and San Patrignano. Leo has smiles and caresses for each of them. Also for Giulietta, a 56-year-old disabled woman: she was a child when she was ‘saved’ by don Oreste Benzi and entrusted to the love of a family home. Stories that Leo touches with his hands and heart.
The Mass at the port: “The people of Romagna are straightforward and jovial”
And when, welcomed by over 50,000 people along the route in the popemobile, he arrives at the port to celebrate Mass together with Cardinal Zuppi, bishops and hundreds of priests and deacons, one of the first thoughts of the homily is precisely a quote from don Benzi. A moment that drives the 26,000 on the beach wild.
Like when he praises “the people of Romagna, straightforward and of a jovial nature, hardworking and supportive.” The warning is to make Rimini a welcoming land “not only for refreshment and entertainment,” but “also for the spirit.” The finale is like a rockstar: when the blessing arrives and the Holy Father greets, the chants “Leo, Leo…” start. It’s 7:58 PM: the Mass is over. A historic day ends. A day worthy of Leo.
San Marino, Pennabilli and Rimini: the stops of the Pontiff, reached by thousands of people who welcomed and followed him along the streets and places of the Romagna territory
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