Marcello Bertinetti

Marcello Bertinetti’s Olympic fencing career spanned two decades, debuting with an Olympic silver in the team sabre in London. But between 1911 and 1922, he served as a medic in Libya, and did not compete. Returning to the Olympics in 1924, he won the last bout in the match against Hungary, which won Italy the match and eventually the gold. Four years later in Amsterdam, he won another gold in the épée event. After four preliminary matches with eight individual wins and losses he was not selected for the final pool, which Italy won ahead of France. Bertinetti also won one silver medal in the individual sabre at the 1929 European Championships. Earlier in his career, he was also a prominent football player. One of the founders of Pro Vercelli’s football section, he played on the team that won the Italian title in 1908. The Bertinetti family produced two more Olympians: son Franco (two-time gold medallist) and grandson Marcello were also successful fencers. In honor of his sporting achievements, Bertinetti was awarded a Gold Medal by the Italian Olympic Committee.