Italian Mattia Furlani Clinches World Silver in Long Jump

At the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, 19-year-old Mattia Furlani won a silver medal in the long jump. He had an exceptional performance on the global stage, securing second place in the championship held in Scotland. Furlani’s impressive jump reached 8.22m, finishing just behind the Greek athlete, Mitiadis Tentoglou. Despite both achieving the same result, Tentoglou clinched the gold medal due to a higher score in the second measurement comparison.

Introduction to Mattia Furlani

The incredible achievement serves as the pinnacle of Furlani’s budding career, which could see another significant milestone at the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics. Hailing from a family with a strong sporting background, Furlani seems destined for success. His family, originally from Grottaferrata in the Castelli Romani area, moved to Rieti in 2010. His sister, Erika, is a well-known athlete (Vice World Pupil Champion in 2013, European Under 23 Bronze in 2017), and his parents, Marcello Furlani (a high jumper with a record of 2.27m in 1985) and Khaty Seck (a sprinter of Senegalese origins), have also enjoyed athletic success.

Currently a member of the Fiamme Oro Padova Group, Furlani has always had a strong affinity for athletics, although he spent a significant portion of his childhood (from ages 8 to 13) focusing on his other passion, basketball. His athletic prowess began to shine through during his cadet years when he won a national title in high jump. In 2020, he set the best national performance under 16 in high jump (2.10m) and 150 meters (16.57).

Furlani’s breakthrough came in 2021 at the U20 European Championships, where he competed against athletes up to three years his senior. After setting a record for the best Italian sixteen-year-old with a 2.17m high jump, he transitioned to the long jump in the 2022 winter season. He made a mark in the long jump with a 7.47m jump, just five centimeters shy of the category limit. He broke the best Italian student performance record held by Andrew Howe for 21 years with an outdoor jump of 7.87m and later improved it by 26 centimeters. He also won a golden double at the U18 European Championships in Jerusalem in the long jump (8.04m) and high jump.

In 2023, Furlani set the European U20 indoor record for the long jump at 7.99m. During the outdoor season, he achieved a windy 8.44m (+2.2), the best under 20 measurement in history under any conditions, and a regular 8.24m, breaking Howe’s Italian junior record of 19 years. He clinched the European U20 title once more in Jerusalem with an 8.23m jump. In 2024, he improved his European U20 indoor record (8.08m) and became the absolute Italian indoor record holder with an 8.34m jump, surpassing Howe’s record (8.30m in 2007). Furlani is currently pursuing his studies at a linguistic institute.