Livio Berruti (1939 – 2026)

Their Story

Livio Berruti, the Olympic 200m champion of Rome 1960, died aged 87 after a period of illness in a clinic in his home city of Turin. Born in Turin on 19 May 1939, Berruti discovered athletics in 1955 at the Liceo Cavour, having originally hoped to focus on tennis. On 3 September 1960, running in his trademark dark glasses, he equalled the then world record of 20.5 seconds in the semi-final at the Stadio Olimpico before repeating the exact same time to win Olympic gold in the final. He was the first European sprinter ever to win the Olympic 200m title, breaking the long-standing dominance of North American athletes in the event. He studied chemistry at the University of Padua while competing, and later worked in communications after retiring from competitive sport. In 2006 he was one of eight Italian sporting greats chosen to carry the Olympic flag at the closing ceremony of the Turin Winter Games. Berruti leaves behind his wife Silvia.</bio> <parameter name="timelineEvents">[ { "date": "1955", "title": "Discovered athletics", "description": "At age 16, Berruti discovered athletics at Liceo Cavour, having originally hoped to pursue tennis" }, { "date": "1957", "title": "National team debut", "description": "Made his debut on the Italian national team at the Six Nations Meet, placing second in the 100m and 200m" }, { "date": "1960-09-03", "title": "Olympic gold medal", "description": "Won the 200m gold at the Rome Olympics in 20.5 seconds, equalling the world record in the semi-final and final. Became the first European sprinter to win the Olympic 200m title" }, { "date": "1961", "title": "Undefeated season", "description": "Ran 26 victories in 26 races, demonstrating peak performance at age 22" }, { "date": "1964", "title": "Tokyo Olympics", "description": "Competed at the Tokyo Olympics, finishing fifth in the 200m final and reaching the 4x100m relay final" }, { "date": "1968", "title": "Mexico City Olympics", "description": "Made his third Olympic appearance in Mexico City, reaching the 200m quarter-finals and competing in the 4x100m relay" }, { "date": "2006", "title": "Turin Winter Games flag bearer", "description": "Selected as one of eight Italian sporting legends to carry the Olympic flag at the closing ceremony of the Turin Winter Games" } ]

Sources

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livio_Berruti