Gelindo Bordin (Vicenza, 2 April 1959), the first Italian runner to win an Olympic marathon, (Seoul, in 1988), will be the guest of honour of Diadora early next week.

He will be in Malta on Monday and Tuesday where all those interested in meeting him can do so at the Diadora Sports Shop in Psaila Street, Birkirkara (Monday 4-6.30pm).

He will also be conducting a training session at the St Aloysius College running track at 7.30pm. The next day, his main commitment will be a press conference at the Diadora premises.

Bordin’s very first break, though, came in 1986, when he won the gold medal at the European Championship.

He then went to grab the third position during the World Championship marathon, in 1987, after a very savvy run, where he demonstrated to be a true champion.

In 1988, right before winning the Olympic Marathon, he had classified fourth in Boston.

Bordin was the first athlete to ever win the Marathon European title twice, when, in 1990 in Split (Croatia), he won the gold medal after a historic race. The same year he achieved another record, one that has found no competitor to date. Bordin won the Boston Marathon, and doing so he became, not only the only Italian athlete to ever win this competition, but the only international athlete to ever win both the Olympic Marathon and the Boston Marathon.

He retired in 1992, but remained in the industry joining successful sport brands such as Diadora, where he is, to date, the Marketing Director.