Orazio Mariani

Orazio Mariani dominated the Italian sprint scene in the 1930s and became an Olympic 4x100 m relay silver medalist at Berlin 1936. His individual career highlight came at the 1938 European Championships where he won the 100 m silver medal and finished fourth in the 4×100 m relay with Gianni Caldana, Tullio Gonnelli, and the non-Olympian Edoardo Daelli.

A seven-time Italian 100 m champion (1933, 1936-39, 1942-43) and with one 200 m title in 1943, as of 2019 Mariani still held the record for most national titles. Nicknamed “Spaccatutt” for his exuberance and impulsiveness, from 1934-41 Mariani represented Italy internationally 16 times.

Personal Best: 100 – 10.4 (1938).