Gianmarco “Gimbo” Tamberi high jump world champion.

The blue athlete, already reigning Olympic champion with the triumph in Tokyo, puts the only title he was missing on the bulletin board, gold in the outdoor world championships in athletics, crowning a fantastic career. Now, after the Olympics, the World Indoor Championships and the two European titles, he has truly won everything.

In the World Championship in Budapest, the Italian overturns a bad start. After a mistake on the first jump at 2.25, he makes a clear run up to 2.36. Unique, together with the American Harrison, to skip the measure, but the American does it on his second attempt. That's all the difference between the two: at the third mistake of his rival at 2.38, Tamberi's joy explodes, who climbs into the stands to kiss his wife and then tries the last jump at 2.40. He's wrong, but it counts for little or nothing in a world championship where only winning counts. The bronze goes to the Qatari Mutaz Essa Barshim, a great friend of Tamberi and Olympic gold ex aequo with the blue in Tokyo.

Yet "Gimbo" Tamberi didn't seem in great shape: in the qualifying he had cut off the pass for the final by the skin of his teeth and had stormed out of the stadium. “How disgusting am I?” he said.

For Italy it is the third medal, the first gold, won at the World Cup underway in Hungary.

(Unioneonline/L)