The man with the sunglasses who drove Rome wild: Italy says goodbye to an Olympic legend

Italian sprinter Livio Berruti, who won the gold medal in the 200-meter dash at the 1960 Rome Olympics and became one of the greatest symbols of Italian athletics, has passed away at the age of 87. Berruti, born in Turin in 1939, was etched into the sporting memory of his country primarily due to his impressive performance before the home crowd at the Olympic Games held in the Italian capital.

Berruti arrived at the Rome Olympics as a 21-year-old chemistry student, but during the games, he became one of the figures most identified with them. Alongside his abilities on the track, he drew attention due to his unusual appearance for the time: Berruti competed wearing dark sunglasses and white socks, a look that over the years became an inseparable part of his image.

His peak came in the 200-meter competition on September 3, 1960. Berruti was not considered the only clear candidate for gold, as the focus was also on the American sprinters, led by Ray Norton. However, in front of the home crowd, the Italian delivered the race of his life. In the semi-finals, he stopped the clock at 20.5 seconds and equaled the world record that existed at the time.

A few hours later, Berruti returned to the track for the final. This time, too, he clocked 20.5 seconds and crossed the finish line first, ahead of American Lester Carney and Frenchman Abdoulaye Seye. Berruti beat Carney by a tenth of a second and completed two races within a few hours in which he equaled the world record.

The victory became one of the most memorable moments of the Rome Olympics. The local crowd at the Olympic Stadium celebrated the young sprinter's win, and the image of Berruti with dark sunglasses crossing the finish line first became one of the most iconic images of Italian sports of that era. Descriptions from that evening recounted that excited spectators set fire to the paper competition programs they held in their hands, and the flames in the stands accompanied the victory celebrations.

The win also had historical significance. Since the 200-meter dash entered the Olympic program in 1900, no European sprinter had won the gold medal in the event. Berruti was the first to do so and broke the North American dominance in the competition, while giving Italy a home achievement in one of the most prestigious sprint events of the Games.

The success in Rome was the highlight of a long and successful career. Berruti won 14 national titles in Italy in the 100 and 200-meter dashes and represented his country in three editions of the Olympic Games - Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964, and Mexico City 1968. He remained one of the prominent faces of Italian athletics during a period when the country was trying to establish its status in international sprint events.

After the games in Rome, Berruti found it difficult to replicate the Olympic achievement. In Tokyo 1964, he reached the semi-finals in the 200 meters and was part of the Italian 4x100 meter relay team. He continued to compete throughout the 60s, until he retired from the track in 1969.

Even decades after his retirement, Berruti remained a well-known and appreciated figure in Italian sports. An expression of his status was given in 2006, when he was chosen to carry the Olympic flag at the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics held in his hometown, Turin.

Following his passing, the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, published a message of condolence and referred to Berruti as a central figure in the history of Italian sports. His death concludes the story of one of the most prominent athletes to emerge in the country, whose victory before the home crowd in Rome remains, more than six decades later, one of Italy's most memorable moments in the Olympic Games.