Giorgio Poggi (born 26 August 1981 in Albenga) is an Italian sailor who specializes in the Finn class. He has been selected to compete for the Italian sailing team at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

, and has come close to an Olympic medal race in the Finn fleet (finishing in eleventh place). Currently, Poggi is ranked nineteenth in the world for his respective sailing class by ISAF, following some of his successes at the Finn Gold Cup, World Championships, and the World Cup series.

Biography

Poggi started sailing at the age of twelve and then first competed as an Optimist and Laser specialist. In 2006, he gained weight and decided to move to the heavier Finn class. Throughout his pre-Olympic career, Poggi had produced a total of six gold medals in different sailing classes at the Italian national championships (from 2002 to 2008). While competing in the sport, Poggi worked as a member of the police force and sailing fleet for Gruppi Sportivi Fiamme Gialle, under the tutelage of his well-accomplished coaches: 2004 Olympian Michele Marchesini and three-time Olympic champion

Valentin Mankin Valentyn Grigoryevich Mankin (russian: Валентин Григорьевич Манкин; 19 August 1938 – 1 June 2014) was a Soviet/Ukrainian sailor from Kyiv, three times Olympic champion for the USSR team. Life Mankin was Jewish. He ...

of the former Soviet Union. Leading up to his Olympic debut, Poggi managed to get 169 points to place nineteenth and assure one of the six available Olympic berths at the ISAF Finn Gold Cup in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. At the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

, Poggi sailed a marvelous stretch to record a net grade of 74 after eight races in the Finn class, but missed out a chance to compete for the Olympic medal by just eight notches behind Spain's

Rafael Trujillo Rafael Leónidas Trujillo Molina ( , ; 24 October 189130 May 1961), nicknamed ''El Jefe'' (, "The Chief" or "The Boss"), was a Dominican dictator who ruled the Dominican Republic from February 1930 until his assassination in May 1961. He ser ...

, finishing in eleventh overall.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Poggi, Giorgio 1981 births Living people Italian male sailors (sport) Olympic sailors for Italy Sailors at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Finn Sailors at the 2016 Summer Olympics – Finn People from Albenga Sailors of Fiamme Gialle Sportspeople from the Province of Savona