Stefano Baldini (born 25 May 1971 in Castelnovo di Sotto,

Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an Regions of Italy, administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia (region), Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 m ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

) is a retired Italian runner who specialized in the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

. He was the Olympic champion in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

in 2004 and was twice European champion (1998 and 2006).

Biography

Baldini was also a world champion in the half marathon, taking the title in

Palma de Mallorca Palma (, ; ), also known as Palma de Mallorca (officially between 1983 and 1988, 2006–2008, and 2012–2016), is the capital and largest city of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is ...

in 1996. In the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

, Baldini finished first in the men's marathon, winning a gold medal. He finished ahead of Brazilian Vanderlei de Lima, who was leading the marathon until being pushed off the course by protester Neil Horan. After a disappointing 2007 season in which he did not complete the London Marathon, Baldini chose to run the New York City Marathon, finishing 4th. Baldini closed his Olympic career at the

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

, finishing 12th. Baldini ended his career in October 2010, having originally planned a final race at the Giro al Sas but deciding against the race because of injury.

Achievements

National titles

He won 13 national championships. * Italian Athletics Championships ** 10,000 metres: 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2002 (6) ** 10 km road: 2010 ** Half marathon: 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2009 (6)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baldini, Stefano 1971 births Living people Sportspeople from the Province of Reggio Emilia Athletes from Emilia-Romagna Italian male long-distance runners Italian male marathon runners Olympic athletes for Italy Olympic gold medalists for Italy Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2000 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Championships athletes for Italy World Athletics Half Marathon Championships winners European Athletics Championships medalists European athletics champions for Italy Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Recipients of the Association of International Marathons and Distance Races Best Marathon Runner Award Italian Athletics Championships winners 20th-century Italian sportsmen

Biography

Achievements

National titles

See also

References

External links