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): Anișoara Cușmir-Stanciu • Aribert Heim • Bobby Hurley • Emperor Go-Fukakusa • Fabrizio Mori • Giovanni Paolo Lascaris • Itamar Franco • Jens Birkemose • John Byner • John Meyers (swimmer) • Joseph Goguen • Karpal Singh • Leon Panetta • Maria Goeppert Mayer • Mary Stuart Masterson • Noel Mugavin • Pete Candoli • Robert Asprin • Simon Larose • Tadasuke Makino • William Hooper

Born in the same month (June 1952): Athanassios Fokas • Bob Neill • Bronisław Komorowski • David Garrison • Denis Herron • Donnie Van Zant • Estelle Morris • Gary Bettman • Gordon McQueen • Jean-Marie Dedecker • Judith Bingham • Junior Brown • Lee Soo-man • Mike Milbury • Nicko McBrain • Satya Pal Jain • Spencer Abraham • Tiiu Aro • Uzi Hitman • Şenol Güneş