Filippo Tortu (born 15 June 1998) is an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

sprinter with a personal best in the 100 meters of 9.99, the first Italian in history to break the 10 seconds barrier. He won the gold medal in 100 metres at the 2017 European U20 Championships and the silver medal at the 2016 World U20 Championships. He ran the anchor leg in the 4×100m relay of the Italian team that won the gold medal at the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...

. He won the bronze medal in 200 metres at the 2022 European Championships. He is coached by his father, Salvino Tortu, a former

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

n sprinter who moved to

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

Biography

Born in Milan but with Sardinian origins (his father, Salvino Tortu, is a former runner too), he began to play sports at the age of eight years, dividing his time between

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

and

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

. In 2010 and 2011, he won the title of fastest runner in Milan while competing in the categories ''prima media'' and ''seconda media'' (first and second years of

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

). He then started to dedicate himself entirely to track and field, coached by his father. In 2013, he won the 80 meters in the Italian championships in Jesolo (category ''cadetto'') with a time of 9.09. He finished third at the 2014 trials for the European Youth Olympic Games although he did not qualify. He did however qualify for the 200 meters, but in the preliminary race for the Youth Olympics he fell at the finish line; he broke both arms and as a result was not able to compete in the finals. In 2015, he broke the Italian youth record in the 100 meters with a time of 10.33, as well as in the 200 meters with a time of 20.92. In 2016, he broke the Italian junior record of 100 meters in Savona, twice obtaining a time of 10.24; this record had been unbeaten for 34 years, and was held by Pierfrancesco Pavoni who ran the distance in 10.25 at the 1982 European Championships. A month later, he landed his first Italian title in Rieti, winning the final of 100 meters in 10.32. He took part in the European Championships in Amsterdam, where he qualified for the semifinals by winning with a time of 10.19, which was a new Italian junior record. He failed, however, to reach the final by 0.03 seconds. He also ran the final leg of 4×100 relay, landing a 5th place. He participated at the World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, where he won the silver medal in 100 meters with 10.24, behind the American

Noah Lyles Noah Lyles (born July 18, 1997) is an American professional track and field sprinter competing in the 100 meters and 200 meters. He is the 2020 Tokyo Olympic 200 m bronze medalist and a two-time World champion, having won the event at th ...

(10.17). In the same championship he participated in the 4×100 relay where they finished 7th. At the Tokyo

, Tortu competed in the men's 100m. He reached the semi-final but did not qualify for the finals. Tortu also ran the anchor leg in the 4×100 relay final, coming from behind to pip the GB team by one-hundredth of a second, running his leg with only 8.845 seconds and winning a historic gold.

National records

100 metres The 100 metres, or 100-meter dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, the dash is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been conteste ...

: 9.99 (+0.2 m/s;

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

, 22 June 2018) - former Italian record * 4×100 m relay: 37.50 (

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, 6 August 2021), he ran final leg in the team with

Lorenzo Patta Lorenzo Patta (born 23 May 2000) is an Italian sprinter who won a gold medal in 4×100 m relay at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. On 13 May 2021, running in Savona in 10.13, he established the 7th Italian all-time performance on 1 ...

Marcell Jacobs Lamont Marcell Jacobs Jr. (born 26 September 1994) is an Italian track and field sprinter and former long jumper. He is the 2020 Olympic 100 metres champion, the 2022 60 metres world champion, the 2022 European 100 metres champion, and a memb ...

, Eseosa Desalu

Achievements

Personal bests

;Outdoor *

: 9.99 (+0.2 m/s;

, 22 June 2018) * Fastest 100 metre anchor leg: 8.845 (

, 5 August 2021) *

200 metres The 200 metres, or 200-meter dash, is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 metre racetrack, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques is needed to successfully run the race. A slightl ...

: 20.10 (+0.3 m/s; Eugene, 19 July 2022) ;Indoor *

60 metres 60 metres, or 60-meter dash, is a sprint event in track and field. It is a championship event for indoor championships, normally dominated by the best outdoor 100 metres runners. At outdoor venues it is a rare distance, at least for senior at ...

: 6.58 (

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...

, 20 January 2019)

National titles

Italian Athletics Championships The Italian Athletics Championships ( it, Campionati italiani assoluti di atletica leggera) are the national championships in athletics, organised every year by the Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera. The first edition, four races only, wa ...

: 2016 *

Italian Athletics Indoor Championships The Italian Athletics Indoor Championships ( it, Italian Athletics Indoor Championships) are the national championships in Athletics (sport), athletics of the indoor events, organised every year by the Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera from ...

: 2020

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tortu, Filippo 1998 births Living people Italian male sprinters Athletes from Milan Athletes (track and field) at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics World Athletics Championships athletes for Italy Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Italy Athletics competitors of Fiamme Gialle Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Italy Mediterranean Games medalists in athletics Athletes (track and field) at the 2018 Mediterranean Games Italian Athletics Championships winners Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Italy Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) People of Sardinian descent European Athletics Championships medalists