Mattia Furlani, the 21-year-old world champion and Olympic bronze medalist, suffered a setback on his first jump in qualifying and has been forced to withdraw from the European Championships.
The European Athletics Championships in Birmingham have lost one of their biggest stars. World long jump champion Mattia Furlani of Italy suffered a serious injury during his first attempt in qualifying and left the Alexander Stadium in a wheelchair. The 21-year-old, who claimed the world title in Tokyo last year and Olympic bronze in Paris, finished 18th in qualifying and failed to make the final.
The incident occurred on Monday, August 10, 2026, when Furlani stepped onto the runway for his first qualifying jump. After an awkward landing, he immediately grabbed his right leg and began limping, unable to continue. Medical staff intervened quickly, and the young athlete was taken off the field in a wheelchair, sparking great concern among those present.
Although the Italian athletics team has not yet officially confirmed the exact nature and severity of the injury, there are fears it could be a recurrence of a problem Furlani has struggled with earlier this season. He sustained an injury at the Diamond League meeting in China at the start of the season and had only been slowly recovering in recent weeks. This new setback casts a shadow over the rest of his season, in which he had already shown excellent form with a leap of 8.43 meters.
That mark of 8.43 meters is better than the one that earned him gold in Tokyo, where he triumphed with a jump of 8.39 meters. Furlani has quickly become one of the most exciting names in world athletics, and this injury is a huge blow not only for him but for the entire competition in Birmingham. It remains to be seen how long this new injury will keep him away from the runway and whether he will be able to defend his world title in the future.
