Enrico FABRIS

Skating policeman

Enrico Fabris started skating at the age of six in his local club in Roana. When he was 22 years old he joined the police force and became a member of Fiamme Oro (Golden Flames), the famous state police sports group.

At the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games, Fabris came 16th in the 5,000m and 26th in the 1,500m. But he was improving rapidly and went on to win at the Innsbruck Winter University Games in 2005.

In 2006, Fabris marked his arrival as a major force with his first victories in the World Cup. Later, at the 2006 Turin Winter Games, Fabris claimed an unexpected bronze medal in the 5,000m event. This bronze medal was Italy’s first Olympic medal in this discipline.

Five days later, the Olympic Games’ first ever team pursuit event was held. Led by Fabris, the Italian relay team overcame the Dutch, who were hot favourites, and went on to beat the Canadians to win gold in front of their home crowd. Fabris completed a memorable Olympic Games by winning his second gold in the 1,500m, his favourite event.