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Tuesday, 11 July 2006 |
World Cup winners Italy given heroes' welcome in Rome  Italy's World Cup-winning squad paraded through Rome with their trophy, in front of thousands of fans and received a heroes' welcome and were earlier met by President Giorgio Napolitano and Prime Minister Romano Prodi.
The triumphant team flew back from Germany on Monday, touching down at Pratica di Mare, just south of the capital.
The Italy squad travelled by open-top bus to the Circus Maximus, where they proudly showed off their trophy.
With an estimated 500,000 supporters thronging the streets of Rome, it took the bus hours longer than expected to fight its way through the crowds and reach the Circus Maximus.
Italy's football team had also left the presidential palace late, with the players, coach Marcello Lippi, technical staff and directors of the Italian football association having all been awarded the Order of Merit of the Republic - one of the state's highest honours.
And there was no hint of any trouble, with thousands of fans seemingly content to wait for hours just for a glimpse of their heroes, who beat France 5-3 on penalties on Sunday to win their fourth World Cup.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 14 July 2006 )
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