On This Day: August 16

One of the most memorable moments in the history of world sport has brought sparkle to August 16. However, just last year, it marked a stunning Italian victory for a coming force in global volleyball. 1970 – Fabio Casartelli, who goes on to win the Olympic Road Race in Barcelona, is born in Como. Casartelli’s career is cut tragically short just three years later when he dies after a crash in the Tour de France. The monument to his death is a sundial set to highlight three dates – his birth, his death and his Olympic victory. 1996 – Roberta Brunet finally puts her rivalry with fellow 5000m runner Maria Guida to bed after breaking her compatriots national record, set only 72 days previously. Brunet’s time of 14:44.50 stands to this day. 2008 – Usain Bolt writes his name into the record books by smashing the 100m World and Olympic Records, recording a time of 9.69 in the Olympic final in Beijing. The Jamaican superstar had eliminated Italy’s Fabio Cerrutti in the first round, while his record time is almost a third of a second faster than any Italian has run. 2015 – The Azzurri win their first ever girls Under-18 Volleyball World Championship, thrashing the USA 3-0 in the final. A spectacular group stage had marked Italy out, winning all four of their games without losing a set, before going on to defeat Argentina, Serbia, Turkey and then the USA to finally improve in their best previous performance, second in 2003.

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