Fabrizio DONATO

He won his first international medal, taking home gold in the triple jump at the Mediterranean Games. He had already become the athlete to beat on a national level having won various Italian titles in the long jump and triple jump. He had been competing for the Sports Division of the Italian Finance Police (known as the “Fiamme Gialle”) since 1995.

He came second in the European Indoor Games in Paris and set an Italian indoor record in the triple jump that is still unbeaten today. The greatest satisfactions, however, were to arrive the following year with a gold medal at the European Championships in Helsinki and, above all, the coveted Olympic medal: a bronze at the London Games.

He announced his retirement from competitive sport. His overall haul included 6 international medals, 20 Italian triple jump titles (12 of which indoors) and 3 Italian indoor championships in the long jump.

The first medals as a coach. After retiring, he welcome Andy Diaz into his home when he defected to Italy from Cuba, becoming his mentor and coach. He assisted the athlete in his burgeoning career, culminating in a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. The same year, in November, he participated in the talk show “Fair Play Menarini – The Champions Tell their Stories”.