Pietro Mennea
Italian sprinter and politician (1952-2013) · Italy · On the map · Athletes · Died at 60
Pietro Paolo Mennea, nicknamed la Freccia del Sud, was an Italian sprinter and politician. He was most successful in the 200 m event, winning a gold medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, and setting a world record at 19.72 seconds in September 1979.
Pietro Mennea is read about 224 times a day, in 41 languages.
A typical day, 30 days to 6 November 2026
The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 400 days, one point a day.
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This record stood for almost 17 years - the longest duration in the event history - and is still the European record. He is the only male sprinter who has qualified at four consecutive 200 metres Olympic finals: from 1972 to 1984.
