Marcell Jacobs

The unexpected 100m Olympic champion at Tokyo 2020 — Italy's most celebrated athletics story.

Lamont Marcell Jacobs was born in El Paso, Texas in 1994 to an American father and Italian mother — growing up in Italy and choosing to represent the country. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics he won the 100-metre gold medal — the first by any Italian in the event's history — running 9.80 seconds and becoming the fastest man in the world. He also anchored Italy's 4x100m relay team to gold in the same Games. His victory came in the first Olympic 100m final without Usain Bolt since 2000 — generating enormous interest in who would succeed the Jamaican. His background — a long jumper who converted to sprinting at 25 — makes his achievement even more remarkable. He suffered persistent injuries after Tokyo that disrupted his attempts to defend his status. His Tokyo performance remains the most unexpected individual sprint result in Olympic history for a decade.

Explosive start with strong finishing speed in sprint events

Breaking Italy's sprint barriers and becoming fastest man in the world in 2021

• Olympic Gold 100m (2021)
• Olympic Gold 4x100m relay (2021)
• European Champion 60m
• Italy's first 100m Olympic champion