Assunta Legnante (born 14 May 1978) is a visually impaired Italian shot putter. She has competed in both the Olympics and the Paralympics, one of the few athletes to do so. As of February 2013 [update] , she is the current F11 shot put world record holder. [1] She competed at the 2020 Summer Paralympics, in Women's discus throw F11, and Women's shot put F12, winning silver medals. [2] [3]
Legnante won the silver medal at the 2002 and the gold medal at the 2007 European Indoor Athletics Championships, where she captained the Italian team. [4] She finished fifth at the 2006 European Athletics Championships. She competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, having missed the 2004 Olympics due to dangerously high intraocular pressure. [4] [5]
Her personal best throw is 19.04 metres, achieved in September 2006 in Busto Arsizio. Her best indoor result is 19.20 metres, achieved in February 2002 in Genova. [6]
Legnante was born with congenital glaucoma in both eyes. [4] In 2009, she suddenly lost the sight in her better, right eye. [4] [5] Her left retina then deteriorated. [4] She had a cataract removed in March 2012, but that did not improve her sight. She now has light perception in her left eye, but nothing more. [4]
The 2007 European indoor champion did not lose heart and started a new career as a Paralympic athlete, training for the forthcoming 2012 Summer Paralympics. [5]
At the 2012 Italian Paralympic Athletics Championships in Turin she set a new F11 shot put world record with a throw of 13.27 metres. [7] On 8 June, at Memorial Primo Nebiolo in Turin, she improved the world record, three times, to 15.22 m. [8] At the London Paralympics, she broke her own world record with a throw of 16.74 metres. [1]
In 2014, she returned to international level throwing 17.09 on 20 June and 17.39 at the regional championships in Naples eight days later.
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics | |||||
| 1996 | World Junior Championships | Sydney, Australia | 13th (q) | Shot put | 13.44 m |
| 1999 | European U23 Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 3rd | Shot put | 16.53 m |
| 2001 | Mediterranean Games | Radès, Tunisia | 1st | Shot put | 17.23 m |
| Universiade | Beijing, China | 11th | Shot put | 16.16 m | |
| 2002 | European Indoor Championships | Vienna, Austria | 2nd | Shot put | 18.60 m |
| European Championships | Munich, Germany | 8th | Shot put | 18.23 m = PB | |
| 2003 | World Indoor Championships | Birmingham, England | 8th | Shot put | 18.20 m |
| World Championships | Paris, France | 8th | Shot put | 18.28 m | |
| 2004 | World Athletics Final | Monte Carlo, Monaco | 6th | Shot put | 17.20 m |
| 2005 | European Indoor Championships | Madrid, Spain | 6th | Shot put | 17.76 m |
| World Championships | Helsinki, Finland | 12th | Shot put | 16.99 m | |
| Universiade | İzmir, Turkey | 4th | Shot put | 17.31 m | |
| 2006 | European Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 5th | Shot put | 18.83 m |
| 2007 | European Indoor Championships | Birmingham, England | 1st | Shot put | 18.92 m |
| 2009 | Mediterranean Games | Pescara, Italy | 2nd | Shot put | 17.44 m |
| Paralympic Athletics | |||||
| 2012 | Summer Paralympics | London, United Kingdom | 1st | Shot put | 16.74 m  |
| 8th | Discus throw | 30.81 m | |||
| 2016 | Summer Paralympics | Rio de Janeiro, Brasil | 1st | Shot put | 15.74 m |
| 4th | Discus throw | 31.51 m | |||
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European Indoor Champions in women's shot put | |
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