Giuseppe De Chirico

Giuseppe De Chirico was an Italian shooter who competed at the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympics, just missing a medal in 1972 when he finished fourth in the English Match at München. Due to his family’s economic difficulties, he joined the Army as a volunteer at age 18, where he learned to shoot.

De Chirico competed at his first European Championships at Bucarest in 1965. In 1970 he won a World team world title in Phoenix, Arizona and in 1971 won a silver medal at the Mediterranean Games behind Zdravko Milutinovic.

As a warrant officer with the Italian Alpine troops, De Chirico won the Romanian International Championships in 1974. He missed the chance for a fourth Olympics when the Italian military joined the 1980 Moskva boycott. Affectionately known as “Pino”, he closed his career in 1985 in Zürich. He later became a coach for the Italian Federation and taught shooting to biathletes in Anterselva. In 2019 the shooting section of Verona dedicated a trophy in his honor.