Donato Sabia died of coronavirus, the former blue athlete struck down at 56

POTENZA – Another coronavirus victim in Basilicata. The fifteenth from the beginning of the epidemic. This is Donato Sabia , the Lucan middle-distance champion, twice a finalist in the 800 meters at the Olympics.

The former athlete from Potentino, 56 years old, had been hospitalized in intensive care in the "San Carlo" hospital in Potenza for two weeks, exactly from March 26, almost simultaneously with the death of his father, which also happened in this case from coronavirus .

Sabia was born in Potenza on 11 September 1963. Arrived in Bergamo in 1984 at the court of Mauro Capponi in the Athletic Club Bergamo, the blue raced for a year alongside Pietro Mennea reaching important milestones such as the Italian titles in the 400 and in the 800 meters and participation in the Los Angeles Olympics.

He held the third Italian performance of all time in the 800 meters – with 1'43 ″ 88 – behind Marcello Fiasconaro and Andrea Longo. He had also made the eleventh absolute Italian performance on the 400 meters, with 45 ″ 73. He was world record holder on the 500 meters (with a time of 1'00 ″ 08), remained undefeated for about 29 years. He had established it in Busto Arsizio on May 26, 1984.

In addition to participating in the Olympic finals in Los Angeles and Seoul and winning the indoor European Championships in Gothenburg, Donato Sabia was fifth in the final of the 4 × 400 relay at the World Athletics Championships that took place in Helsinki in 1983. (source ANSA)

Source: Blitz Quotidiano

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