Salvatore Antibo (born 7 February 1962) is a former long-distance runner from

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. He won nine medals at the

International athletics competitions In the sport of athletics, international competitions between national teams can be distinguished into four main types: * Multi-sport events, commonly referred to as games, where athletics events form part of a wider sporting programme * World ch ...

. but curiously, he never won

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

(not outdoor, not indoor).

Biography

Antibo was born on 7 February 1962 in Altofonte, within the

province of Palermo The Province of Palermo ( it, provincia di Palermo; Sicilian: ''pruvincia di Palermu'') was a province in the autonomous region of Sicily, a major island in Southern Italy. Its capital was the city of Palermo. On 4 August 2015, it was replaced ...

(

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

). He revealed as a consistent middle-distance runner in the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, when he arrived fourth in the 10,000 m final. His national popularity was however overshadowed by his compatriot Alberto Cova, who won the gold medal. After a bronze medal at the 1986 European Championships, behind

Stefano Mei Stefano Mei (born 3 February 1963 in La Spezia) is an Italian long-distance runner who specialized in the 5000 and 10000 metres. European champion on 10000 m in 1986. From 31 January 2021 he is the new president of Italian Athletics Federation ...

and again Cova, he gained the status of Italian number one, winning the silver medal over 10,000 m at the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

in Seoul. At the

1990 European Championships in Athletics The 15th European Athletics Championships were held from 26 August to 2 September 1990 in Split, Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia. The host stadium was Stadion Poljud. It was the last participation of East Germany (which was already scheduled to be merged ...

in Split he was victorious over both 10,000 m and 5000 m, becoming one of the most popular sportsmen in his country. He was famous for his unorthodox tactics. In Split, he won the 10,000 m through front-running and the 5000 m with a sprint on the final straight. In the 10,000 m final at the

1991 World Championships in Athletics The 3rd World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held in the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan between August 23 and September 1. 1517 athletes from 167 countries participa ...

in Tokyo, Antibo finished twentieth and last, losing to, for example, Moses Tanui, Richard Chelimo and Khalid Skah. He ran well during the first half of the race, but he slowed down radically during the second half (see, for example, "World Athletics Championships in Tokyo 1991" (Yleisurheilun MM-kisat Tokiossa 1991), The Runner magazine (Juoksija-lehti), Helsinki, 1991). It was eventually revealed that such sudden absences during the races were related to a form of

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...

. He retreated from professional athletics after his return from the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

for a seizure in his last run.

National records

*5000 metres: 13:05.59 (

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

, 18 July 1990) - 8 September 2020 *10,000 metres: 27:16.50 (

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

, 29 June 1989) - 6 October 2019

References

External links

* *
Salvatore Antibo
at

FIDAL The Italian Athletics Federation ( Italian: ''Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera'', FIDAL), is the governing body for athletics in Italy since 1906. The Italian Federation, founded on 21 October 1906, on initiative of ''La Gazzetta dello S ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Antibo, Salvatore 1962 births Living people People from Altofonte Sportspeople from the Province of Palermo Italian male long-distance runners Athletes (track and field) at the 1984 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1988 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 1992 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes of Italy World Athletics Championships athletes for Italy Athletics competitors of Fiamme Oro European Athletics Championships medalists European athletics champions for Italy Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Italy Olympic silver medalists in athletics (track and field)

Biography

National records

See also

References

External links