Simone Sabbioni (born 3 October 1996) is an Italian competitive

swimmer Swimming is an individual or team racing sport that requires the use of one's entire body to move through water. The sport takes place in pools or open water (e.g., in a sea or lake). Competitive swimming is one of the most popular Olympic ...

and two-time Olympian who competed at the

2016 Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

and the

2020 Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. He is a former Italian record holder in the short course 50 metre backstroke, 100 metre backstroke, 200 metre backstroke, 4×50 metre medley relay and the

long course An Olympic-size swimming pool is a swimming pool which conforms to the regulations for length, breadth, and depth made by World Aquatics (formerly FINA) for swimming at the Summer Olympics and the swimming events at the World Aquatics Champion ...

100 metre backstroke.

International career

2014–2015

At the

2014 Summer Youth Olympics The 2014 Summer Youth Olympics (), officially known as the II Summer Youth Olympic Games , and commonly known as Nanjing 2014 ( zh, c=南京2014, p=Nánjīng Èr Líng yī sì), were the second Youth Olympic Games, Summer Youth Olympic Games, an ...

, in

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in August 2014, Sabbioni won a gold medal in the 100 metre backstroke along with Evgeny Rylov of

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

as they both swam the exact same time of 54.24 seconds in the final."Nanjing provides perfect springboard for Rio"
''

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

''. 3 October 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2021. On 14 April 2015, at the year's Italian Spring National Championships in

Riccione Riccione (; ) is a (municipality) in the Province of Rimini, Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy. Riccione is centred on the Rio Melo, a minor river that flows into the Adriatic Sea. In the decades following the construction of the Bologna–Ancona r ...

, he broke the national record in the

100 metre backstroke with his time of 53.49, which lowered the record over two tenths of a seconds from the prior record of 53.77 seconds set in 2009 by Mirco Di Tora.Marsteller, Jason (14 April 2015)
"Simone Sabbioni Cracks Italian Techsuit Record in 100 Back"
''

Swimming World } ''Swimming World'' is a US-based quarterly swimming magazine that was first published in a magazine format as ''Junior Swimmer'' in January 1960. It concurrently runs online websites ''Swimming World Magazine'' and ''Swimming World News'' (kn ...

''. Retrieved 30 September 2021.Lepesant, Anne (15 April 2015)
"Watch Simone Sabbioni Break The Italian National Record In 100M Back"
''

SwimSwam ''SwimSwam'' is a swimming news organization covering competitive swimming along with diving, water polo and synchronized swimming. SwimSwam launched as a website in March 2012. History The news organization was founded by Braden Keith, Garrett ...

''. Retrieved 30 September 2021.

2015 European Short Course Championships

In early December, at the 2015 European Short Course Swimming Championships in

Netanya Netanya () () or Natanya (), is a city in the "Planet Bekasi" Central District (Israel), Setanyahu of Israel, Israel BAB ih, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa, between the Poleg stre ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, Sabbioni set Italian national records in all three distances of the short course backstroke events, including two records in the 50 metre backstroke of 23.23 seconds in the semifinals and 23.09 seconds in the final, a record of 50.57 seconds in the 100 metre backstroke, and a record of 1:50.75 in the 200 metre backstroke.Lepesant, Anne (6 December 2015)
"Sabbioni Breaks Italian 50M Back Record, Now Owns All 3 Distances"
''

''. Retrieved 31 October 2021. He also helped set an Italian record at 1:31.71 in the 4×50 metre medley relay. Later in the month, at the 2015 Italian Winter National Championships, he swam a 53.37 in the 100 metre backstroke, setting a new Italian national record in the event."FINA: Simone Sabbioni"
''

FINA World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA (; ), is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competitions in List of water sports, water sports. It is one of several interna ...

''. Retrieved 30 September 2021.Keith, Braden (19 April 2016)
"Simone Sabbioni Breaks Italian National Record In 100 Backstroke"
''

''. Retrieved 30 September 2021.

2016–2017

In April 2016, at the Italian Spring National Championships for the year in Riccione, Sabbioni broke his former national record of 53.37 seconds in the 100 metre backstroke with his new time of 53.34 seconds. The following month, he won a bronze medal at the

2016 European Aquatics Championships The 2016 European Aquatics Championships took place from 9 to 22 May 2016 in London, United Kingdom, in the London Aquatics Centre. It was the thirty second edition of the event, and the second held in the same year as a Summer Olympics. Hosts Gr ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, in the 100 metre backstroke with a time of 54.19 seconds. (in Italian)

2017 Winter National Championships

At the short course 2017 Italian Winter National Championships in early December, Sabbioni lowered his Italian records in the 100 metre backstroke, from a 50.57 to a 49.96, and the 50 metre backstroke, from a 23.09 to a 23.06.Keith, Braden (1 December 2017)
"Simone Sabbioni Becomes 3rd Italian Record Breaker On Day 1"
''

''. Retrieved 31 October 2021.

2017 European Short Course Championships

Later in December, at the 2017 European Short Course Swimming Championships in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

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, Sabbioni broke his own national record in the 100 metre backstroke again, lowering the mark to 49.68 seconds and winning the silver medal in the event.Sutherland, James (15 December 2017)
"Kolesnikov Narrowly Misses World Record, Takes Down WJR In 100 Back"
''

''. Retrieved 31 October 2021. For the 50 metre backstroke, Sabbioni lowered his national record of 23.06 from earlier in the month by one hundredth of a second to 23.05 in the final, winning the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

in the event and finishing two hundredths of a second ahead of Kliment Kolesnikov of Russia who won the silver medal.Pruden, Cathleen (17 December 2017)
"Simone Sabbioni Wins, Kliment Kolesnikov Lowers World Junior Record in 50 Back"
''

''. Retrieved 31 October 2021."2017 European Short Course Swimming Championships, Day 5: Golden finish for Sjostrom and the Italians"
'' LEN''. 17 December 2017. Retrieved 31 October 2021. Speaking to LEN about the race, Sabbioni said, "Before the race I got really angry. This is the feeling you need to win the 50m. It gives you the power, the strength, the speed. I felt my legs after the turns but anger took over again and it lifted my spirit enough to win this race." In addition to his gold medal and silver medal in individual events, Sabbioni also won a silver medal in the 4×50 meter medley relay, helping the relay finish in a total time of 1:31.91 with his split time of 23.14 seconds for the backstroke leg of the relay.

2018–2019

2018 World Short Course Championships

At the 2018 World Short Course Championships held in

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

in December, Sabbioni competed on the finals relay of the 4×50 metre medley relay, helping the relay achieve a time of 1:31.54, set a new Italian record in the event, and place fourth overall.

(15 December 2018)
"14th FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) Hangzhou (CHN): Men's 4x50m Medley Relay Final Results"
''

Omega Timing Omega SA is a Swiss luxury watchmaker based in Biel/Bienne, Switzerland. Founded by Louis Brandt in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1848, the company formerly operated as ''Louis Brandt et Fils'' until incorporating the name ''Omega'' in 1903, becoming ' ...

''. Retrieved 31 October 2021.

2019 World Championships

At the

2019 World Aquatics Championships The 2019 World Aquatics Championships were the 18th FINA World Aquatics Championships, held in Gwangju, South Korea from 12 to 28 July 2019. The city had previously hosted the 2015 Summer Universiade aquatics events in the same venues.

Gwangju Gwangju (; ), formerly romanized as Kwangju, is South Korea's list of cities in South Korea, sixth-largest metropolis. It is a designated Special cities of South Korea, metropolitan city under the direct control of the central government's Home ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

in July 2019, Sabbioni competed in the 50 metre backstroke, 100 metre backstroke, mixed 4×100 metre medley relay, and 4×100 metre medley relay."18th FINA World Championships 2019: Results Book"
''

''. 28 July 2019. Retrieved 22 September 2021. Sabbioni was one of two swimmers, the other being Dylan Carter of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

, to have wedge equipment malfunction during his backstroke start in the 100 metre backstroke, and the only swimmer to have the technology fail a second time after officials assured him nothing would happen, this story was picked up and covered by newspapers ''

The Seattle Times ''The Seattle Times'' is an American daily newspaper based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891, ''The Seattle Times'' has the largest circulation of any newspaper in the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region. The Seattle Time ...

'' and ''

The Korea Herald ''The Korea Herald'' () is a South Korean English-language daily newspaper founded in August 1953 and published in Seoul. The editorial staff is composed of Korean and international writers and editors, with additional news coverage drawn from i ...

''.Latimer, Jolene (21 July 2019)
"Equipment failures plague men's 100 backstroke at worlds"
''

''. Retrieved 21 September 2021.Yonhap (22 July 2019)
"Malfunctioning equipment forces solo re-races in preliminary"
''

''. Retrieved 21 September 2021. As officials ruled it was equipment failure on the wedge malfunction each time, Sabbioni was allowed to re-race the event until the equipment worked, at which point he swam a 53.85 for his time in the prelims heats and advanced to the semifinals. In the semifinals, Sabbioni finished with a time of 53.71 seconds, tied for 12th overall with Daniel Martin of

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

, and did not advance to the final of the event.

2021

2020 Summer Olympics

At the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

in 2021, Sabbioni ranked 17th in the 100 metre backstroke with a time of 53.79 and competed in the first ever swimming of the 4×100 metre mixed medley relay event at the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

, which was the preliminaries of the event on 29 July, where he swam the backstroke leg of the relay and helped qualify for the final ranking fifth overall, where the finals relay went on to place fourth.

;

Atos Atos SE is a European multinational information technology (IT) service and consulting company with headquarters in Bezons suburb of Paris, France, and offices worldwide. It specialises in hi-tech transactional services, unified communicat ...

(1 August 2021)
"Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: Swimming Results Book"
. ''

''. Retrieved 21 September 2021.

2021 European Short Course Championships

Sabbioni was one of a total of 40 swimmers named to the Italian team in October 2021 to compete at the 2021 European Short Course Swimming Championships held in November at the Kazan Aquatics Palace located in

Kazan Kazan; , IPA: Help:IPA/Tatar, ɑzanis the largest city and capital city, capital of Tatarstan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka (river), Kazanka Rivers, covering an area of , with a population of over 1. ...

.Keith, Braden (6 October 2021)
"Italy Declares 40 Swimmers For 2021 European Short Course Championships"
''

''. Retrieved 6 October 2021. He went for depth with his events for the Championships, entering to compete in all available distances in backstroke, the 50 metre backstroke, 100 metre backstroke, and 200 metre backstroke. LEN (24 October 2021)
"2021 LEN Short-Course European Championships Psych Sheets"
''

''. Retrieved 28 October 2021. On the first day of competition, 2 November, he placed third in his prelims heat of the 50 metre backstroke with a time of 23.50 seconds and did not advance to the semifinals. LEN (2 November 2021)
"2021 European Short Course Swimming Championships Kazan (RUS): Results 50m Backstroke Men Preliminary"
''Microplus Informatica''. Retrieved 2 November 2021. While his time was faster than some of the swimmers who qualified for the semifinals, including

Kristóf Milák Kristóf Milák (born 20 February 2000) is a Hungarian Swimming (sport), swimmer. He is the current holder of the List of world records in swimming, world record in the long course World record progression 200 metres butterfly, 200 metre butter ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

in the same prelims heat, only the fastest two Italian swimmers advanced, which did not include Sabbioni.Sutherland, James (2 November 2021)
"Pilato, Sabbioni Among Big Names Eliminated In Heats On Day 1 Of SC Euros"
''

''. Retrieved 2 November 2021. The same day he was officially withdrawn from the 200 metre backstroke, opting not to race the event. LEN (2 November 2021)
"2021 European Short Course Swimming Championships Kazan (RUS): Start List 200m Backstroke Men Preliminary"
''MicroPlus Informatica''. Retrieved 3 November 2021. In the prelims heats of the 100-metre backstroke on the third day of competition, Sabbioni swam a 51.98 and did not advance to the semifinals. LEN (4 November 2021)
"2021 European Short Course Swimming Championships Kazan (RUS): Results 100m Backstroke Men Preliminary"
''Microplus Informatica''. Retrieved 4 November 2021.

2022–2023

In November 2022, Sabbioni was banned by

, now

World Aquatics World Aquatics, formerly known as FINA (; ), is the international federation recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for administering international competitions in List of water sports, water sports. It is one of several interna ...

, from their competitions for 20 months (starting 23 March 2022 and continuing through the end of the day on 22 November 2023) after representatives from the

World Anti-Doping Agency The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA; , AMA) is an international organization co-founded by the governments of over 140 nations along with the International Olympic Committee based in Canada to promote, coordinate, and monitor the fight against d ...

had difficulty ascertaining his whereabouts for testing on three occasions, a case similar to

Rūta Meilutytė Rūta Meilutytė (; born 19 March 1997) is a Lithuanian swimmer. An Olympic gold medalist, she is a world record holder in the short course 50 metre breaststroke, 100 metre breaststroke and long course 50 metre breaststroke. She is a former ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

from 2019.Ricci, Dario (22 November 2022)
"Nuoto, Simone Sabbioni patteggia con la Procura Antidoping: 20 mesi di stop"
(in Italian). ''OA Sport''. Retrieved 14 April 2023.Vigarani, Marco (24 November 2022)
"Riccione, manca per tre volte al controllo antidoping: squalifica per il nuotatore Simone Sabbioni"
(in Italian). '' Corriere di Bologna''. Retrieved 14 April 2023.

International championships (50 m)

: Sabbioni swam only in the preliminaries.

International championships (25 m)

: Sabbioni swam only in the preliminaries.

Personal best times

Short course metres (25 m pool)

Legend: NR – Italian record

National records

Long course metres (50 m pool)

Short course metres (25 m pool)

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sabbioni, Simone Living people Italian male backstroke swimmers Italian male medley swimmers Medalists at the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) European Aquatics Championships medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics 1996 births Swimmers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Swimmers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic swimmers for Italy Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Italy Mediterranean Games silver medalists for Italy Mediterranean Games medalists in swimming Swimmers at the 2018 Mediterranean Games Youth Olympic gold medalists for Italy 21st-century Italian sportsmen Sportspeople from Rimini