The Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL) will celebrate the 80th birthday of Olympic gold medal-winning walker Abdon Pamich, reports ansa.it.
He will be welcomed by the President of FIDAL, Alfio Giomi.
Pamich, who turned 80 on 3 October, will be celebrated at a special ceremony on 18 October at the headquarters of FIDAL in Rome.
The walker’s most memorable performances were the 50km walk during the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo and his two European Athletics Championships titles in 1962 and 1966 over the same distance.
On 16 October 1960 in Ponte San Pietro, Italy, he set the 50km world record with a time of 4:03:02.
Pamich was born in Rijeka in 1933; the city was under Italian jurisdiction at the time.
He received the highest honour of becoming the nation’s flag bearer at the 1972 Olympic Games held in Munich.
In 2008 he was given the Mecenate Fairplay Prize, rewarding his career achievements and dedication to the sport of athletics.