Tokyo World Championships, tears of joy for Mattia Furlani

This is how a tearful Mattia Furlani commented to RAI microphones on the gold medal won at the World Championships in Tokyo in the men’s long jump, the first for Italy at this rainbow event.

“I still don&#8217t know if it&#8217s real, until I hear the anthem I don&#8217t believe it. Something magical happened tonight, we managed the race perfectly, we adjusted everything jump by jump until we got this incredible result”.

“For this result I have to thank so many people, mom first of all, my girlfriend, my sister but all of’Italy that supported me. It’s a magical year, but it&#8217s just the beginning”.

Mattia Furlani, 20, is the first Italian ever to win a gold medal in the men’s long jump at the outdoor world championships; last winter he had succeeded in the same feat at the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing. He is also a reigning Olympic bronze medalist.