Italian track and field has achieved a remarkable double milestone, with Mattia Furlani and Leonardo Fabbri rising to No. 1 in the World Athletics rankings for their respective events.
Furlani leads the men’s long jump standings with 1,368 points, narrowly ahead of Greece’s two-time Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou, who has 1,362. Bulgaria’s Bozhidar Saraboyukov ranks third with 1,332 points.
The 21-year-old Italian has held the top position for nearly a year, supported by an outstanding series of international results. His strongest performance came at the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, where he captured the gold medal with a personal-best jump of 8.39 meters. That victory made him the youngest men’s world long jump champion and the first Italian to win the global outdoor title in the event.
Furlani also earned major ranking points with an 8.30-meter jump in the Diamond League Final, another 8.39-meter performance at the World Indoor Championships and an impressive 8.43-meter victory in Keqiao. After sustaining an injury in Xiamen, he returned to competition in Monaco with a jump of 8.01 meters. His primary objective is now the European Championships in Birmingham, scheduled for August 10–16.
Fabbri, meanwhile, has climbed to the top of the men’s shot put rankings with 1,402 points. He leads American star Joe Kovacs, who has 1,389, and Jamaica’s Rajindra Campbell, who follows with 1,367.
The 29-year-old Tuscan strengthened his position by producing a world-leading throw of 22.74 meters in Eugene. His ranking also reflects a 21.94-meter bronze-medal performance at the 2025 World Championships, a 22.14-meter victory at Rome’s Golden Gala and the 22.45-meter throw that secured his European title.
World Athletics calculates its rankings from an athlete’s 5 best results, combining performance scores with bonuses based on placement and competition level. Italy now sits at the summit of 2 major men’s field events – a powerful confirmation of the country’s growing international stature.
