Born: 5 October 1981

Birthplace: Asiago (Italy)

Nationality: Italy

Sport: Skating

ATTENDANCE AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES

Salt Lake City 2002

Turin 2006

AWARDS

Olympic medals:

Gold: 2

Bronze: 1

Other results:

World Single Distances Championships

Silver: 1 (2005)

World Allround Championships

Silver: 1 (2006)

Italy's Surprise

Enrico Fabris started skating at the age of six in his local club in Roana. After 16 years of practising, he joined, like many other Italian champions, the Italian police's sports group, the famous "Fiamme Oro".

At his first Olympic Games in Salt Lake City in 2002, Enrico Fabris came 16th in the 5,000m and 26th in the 1,500m. But the graduate from the University of Padua made progress, and quickly moved up in the world rankings. Winter 2006 marked his arrival among the world's best, with his first victories in the World Cup and his title of European champion. At the Olympic Games in Turin, Fabris was considered an outsider in the speed skating competition. No-one thought he would make his mark on this edition of the Games, nor go down in the history of Italian sport.

On 11 February 2006, Enrico Fabris was leading Dutchman Carl Verheijen by 59/100 of a second, and came third in the 5,000m event won by America's Chad Hedrick. This bronze medal was an exploit in itself, as it was Italy's first Olympic medal in this discipline.

Five days later, the Games' first ever team pursuit event was held. The Italian relay team met the Dutch in the semi-finals. The latter were the world champions and the hot favourites to win the event. The Italian victory put the team in the final at Turin's Oval Lingotto, in front of a crowd at fever-pitch. Headed by their leader Fabris in the final race, the Italian team were ahead of their Canadian opponents. Enrico and his partners, Matteo Anesi, Stefano Donagrandi and Ippolito Sanfratello, won the Olympic title.

Five days before the end of the Games, Fabris competed in the 1,500m, his favourite event. Once he had skated, the Italian had to await the results of the other competitors to find out his ranking. After the two American favourites, world record-holder Chad Hedrick and Shani Davis, had skated, Enrico could explode with joy. He beat them by 16/100 and 25/100 of a second. He had just won his second Olympic gold medal at the Turin Olympic Games.

The Asiago boy, a singer and guitar player in his free time, became the second Italian man in history to win three medals at a single edition of the Winter Games.