Pietro Mennea

Pietro Paolo Mennea, nicknamed la Freccia del Sud, was an Italian sprinter and politician. He was most successful in the 200m event, winning a gold medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, and setting a world record at 19.72 seconds in September 1979. This record stood for almost 17 years – the longest duration in the event history – and is still the European record. He is the only male sprinter who has qualified at four consecutive 200 metres Olympic finals: from 1972 to 1984.

28 June 1952

Born on the same birth date (28 June 1952): Jean-Christophe Rufin

Born on the same birth day (28 June): Adolfo Schwelm Cruz • Aileen Quinn • Charles Cruft (showman) • Clint Boon • David Johnston • Frank Zane • George Booth (cartoonist) • Giovanni Paolo Lascaris • Hans Alfredson • Hans-Joachim Walde • Jack Gold • Jevgeni Novikov • John Boyle O'Reilly • Julia Zlobina • Muhammad Azam Shah • Mushtaq Ahmed (cricketer) • Phil Bardsley • Procol Harum • Robert Asprin • Sergei Bodrov • Shirley Cheriton

Born in the same month (June 1952): Bob Ainsworth • Bronisław Komorowski • Estelle Morris • Gino Vannelli • Isabella Rossellini • Jean-Christophe Rufin • Kristina Abelli Elander • Kōichi Mashimo • Liam Neeson • Madan Bhandari • Martin Gerschwitz • Nicko McBrain • Patrick Dunleavy • Péter Erdő • Tiiu Aro • Uzi Hitman • Şenol Güneş