Elio Morille (7 September 1927 – 21 June 1998) was an Italian

rower Rowing, sometimes called crew in the United States, is the sport of racing boats using oars. It differs from paddling sports in that rowing oars are attached to the boat using oarlocks, while paddles are not connected to the boat. Rowing is ...

who competed in the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ...

and in the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

. He was born in

Alessandria Alessandria (; pms, Lissandria ) is a city and ''comune'' in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about east of Turin. Alessandri ...

in 1927. A worker at the Italian motorbike manufacturer

Moto Guzzi Moto Guzzi is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer and the oldest European manufacturer in continuous motorcycle production. Established in 1921 in Mandello del Lario, Italy, the company is noted for its historic role in Italy's motorcycling ma ...

based at their plant in

Mandello del Lario Mandello del Lario (Lecchese: ) is an Italian town and '' comune'' in the province of Lecco, in Lombardy, on Lake Como. Since 1921, Mandello del Lario has been home to Moto Guzzi—the Italian motorcycle manufacturer, now a subsidiary of Piaggi ...

, he became a member of the company's rowing team, Canottieri Moto Guzzi. A coxless four was formed with Giuseppe Moioli, Morille, Giovanni Invernizzi, and Franco Faggi. The first time they left their home training ground,

Lake Como Lake Como ( it, Lago di Como , ; lmo, label=Western Lombard, Lagh de Còmm , ''Cómm'' or ''Cùmm'' ), also known as Lario (; after the la, Larius Lacus), is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the thir ...

, was when they travelled to the

1947 European Rowing Championships The 1947 European Rowing Championships were rowing championships held on the Rotsee in the Swiss city of Lucerne. The competition was for men only, they competed in all seven Olympic boat classes (M1x, M2x, M2-, M2+, M4-, M4+, M8+), and 15 nations ...

Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label= Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital o ...

, Switzerland. Little known in rowing circles, they unexpectedly won the gold medal in their boat class. The four were to dominate this boat class until 1952, continuously winning all races they rowed including all heats. In 1948 he was a crew member of the Italian boat which won the gold medal in the coxless fours event. Four years later he was eliminated with the Italian boat in the semi-final repêchage of the coxless four competition. He died in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 1998.

References

1927 births 1998 deaths Italian male rowers Olympic rowers for Italy Rowers at the 1948 Summer Olympics Rowers at the 1952 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for Italy Sportspeople from Alessandria Olympic medalists in rowing Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics European Rowing Championships medalists {{Italy-Olympic-medalist-stub