Emilio Polli

Emilio Polli

Polli sits on the bank of the onshore of "Navigli" of Milan in 1919
Personal information
Nickname	de Franchi
Nationality	Italy
Born	1901 Milan, Italy
Died	1983 Milan, Italy
Height	6 ft 3.8 in (192.5 cm)
Weight	213 lb (97 kg)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Strokes	freestyle
Club	Società Canottieri Milano
Coach	was the trainer of Paolo Biotti
Medal record Men's swimming Representing the Italy

Emilio Polli (1901 – 1983) was the strongest freestyle swimmer Italian champion until 1931, several times Olympic athlete in the 1924 Summer Olympics and in the 1928 Summer Olympics.

With a powerful physique, a height not common for those years and a special charisma, Emilio Polli is considered one of the most representative interpreters of the pioneering modern sports era of Italy and Europe.

Over the years he won twenty-five italian national titles, and was part of the first historic generation of Italian swimmers able to establish itself in the international arena in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

In 1920, at only nineteen years old, Emilio Polli was ranked among the 107° most strongest top swimmers of all time in the world.

Biography

Emilio Polli, start to swim at only 5 years old, in 1906, thanks to his father Pietro which shall enter it the Fin, the Italian Swimming Federation in Como, an entity who was born only a few years before, during a family travel on the lake of Como. He captivate for swimming but also to diving and water polo and thereafter start to swim regularly in Milan at the Canottieri Club Milan, historical for the publics was his initials competitions in the waterway "Navigli", the rivers inside the city of Milan, that immediately attracting thousands of spectators.

In 1924 he made his debut in the Italian championships by winning the 100-meter freestyle and backstroke, earning immediately the convocation for the Olympic Games in Paris where he swam in the relay, but was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay competition of the Olympic games.

During his career, he established the Italian records in the 100 and 200 meters freestyle and in the 100 meters backstroke style.

Until 1931 he had never lost freestyle race in an Italian Championship.

For six years no-stop, won the Italian Championships "100 meters Freestyle", 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929 and 1931. In the "50 meters Freestyle" won the Italian championship three times in 1926, 1927 and 1928. In the "200 mt. freestyle" won the Italian Championships in 1927. But even in the "100 mt. backstroke" won the Italian Championships three years in a row in 1924, 1925 and 1926.

Four years later, in 1928, he was eliminated in the semi-finals of the Summer Olympics 100 metre freestyle event. He was also a member of the Italian relay team which was eliminated in the first round of the 4 × 200 metre freestyle relay competition.

It was the most followed Italian athlete in the Olympic Games of Amsterdam, considered the first real edition of the modern Olympics games.

In 1926 are played the first "European Swimming Championships" of the sport history in Budapest, Emilio Polli, was called like sport icon ambassador of Italy, he was in the final of the 100 meters (7th) and in the final of the 4 × 200 m freestyle, fifth with Renato Bacigalupo, Gianni Patrignani and Bruno Parenzan.

In 1927, was organized the Europeans Champhionship in Bologna, Emilio Polli is still a finalist in both races, fifth in the 100m freestyle, and fourth in the relay with Hector De Barbieri, Conelli and Antonio Bacigalupo.

Emilio Polli was also champion of water polo and diving. Emilio Polli was the captain of the legendary Italian National Water Polo team during the European Championships of Budapest in 1926, led by the coach Bela Komyadi with Bruno Parenzan, Renato Becigalupo, Gianni Patrignani, Luigi Cangiullo, Antonio Conelli.

After visiting several European capitals in its sports trips like Paris, he promoted to sensitize the political world of Milan to open public pools desintate to young people, in 1939 in Milan opens with the design architect Andrea Pizzala, the pool Caimi, where he will attend the inauguration. Polli was the owner and CEO of Polli Food Brothers Corporation, an Italian food and agroindustrial company.

Personal life

Emilio Polli, "milanese", was the son of Lady Giulia Brambilla and Lord Pietro Polli, initially took the nickname during competitions of "Emilio de Franchi" in order to not involve the food company name "Polli Brothers" (Fratelli Polli) in his activity and do not explains anything to his father that wouldn't have distractions from the studies.

Emilio Polli with a powerful physique and a height not common for those years, was considered at the time one of the most representative interpreters of all the sport system in Italy in 1932.

Emilio Polli was for a long time opponent of Johnny Weissmuller, who participated in the competitions and in the Olympic Games illegally with fake data passport. Next Emilio and Johnny became close friends.

Through his friendship with Johnny Weissmuller, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame of body building and became the well-known actor who played the popular Tarzan in the movies, It is proposed to enter as an actor in American cinema market, but Emilio Polli decide to decline the offer of going to live in Hollywood. Emilio is was the youngest of six children, two daughters, Elena and Mara Polli Barabino and three older brothers, Giovanni, Angelo and Gino Polli, all soldiers hero, Officer, Colonel and General of the Italian army, engaged in foreign missions in war zones for long time, and when his father's death, Emilio at age 32 years old, he will have to directing the food company Fratelli Polli in Milan. Emilio Polli, in those years, thanks to its activities, was one of the first to study food nutrition applied to sports, and to advise some of the biggest sports stars in the world.

From 1977 to 1983, Emilio Polli began to teach swimming and athletic training to his nephew Paolo Emilio Biotti, still a child, that becoming a professional athlete and part of the first historic generation of Italians able to compete in the international arena, this time in combat sports and in particular, but not only, in Thai boxing.

Italian championships

Winner of 14 individual Italian titles and 11 Italian titles in team:

• 7 times Italian champion in 100 m freestyle
• 3 times Italian champion in 50 m freestyle
• 3 times Italian champion in 100 m breaststroke
• 1 times Italian champion in 200 m freestyle
• 7 times Italian champion 4×200 m freestyle
• 2 times Italian champion 5×50 m freestyle
• 1 times Italian champion 4×100 m freestyle
• 1 times Italian champion 3×100 m mix

Palmarès

Olympic Games	100 m freestyle	4×200 m freestyle
1924 Paris France	---	7º semifinals - 11'00"4 :
1928 Amsterdam Netherlands	13º semifinals "	in Team eliminated :
European championship	100 m freestyle	4×200 m freestyle
1926 Budapest Hungary	7º 1'08"0	5º - 10'49"5 :
1927 Bologna Italy	5º 1'05"2	4º - 10'19"0 :

Bibliography

• Aronne Anghileri, Alla ricerca del nuoto perduto, Cassina de' Pecchi, SEP editrice S.R.L., 2002, vol. II. ISBN 88-87110-27-1.
• France Olympic Committee, VIII^me Olympiade, 1924 (versione digitalizzata) challenger Johnny Weissmuller
• Dutch Olympic Committee, The Ninth Olympiad Amsterdam 1928 Official Report, 1928 (versione digitalizzata) challenger Johnny Weissmuller
• Swimmers at the 1924 Summer Olympics: Johnny Weissmuller, Duke Kahanamoku, Frank Beaurepaire, Boy Charlton, Jack Hatfield, Gertrude Ederle, Emilio Polli, LLC Books, General Books LLC, 2010
• Swimmers at the 1928 Summer Olympics: Johnny Weissmuller, Buster Crabbe, Boy Charlton, Walter Laufer, Jack Hatfield, Walter Spence Emilio Polli, LLC Books, General Books LLC, 2010
• Almanacco italiano, Volume 34, Bemporad-Marzocco, 1929
• Swimming in Italy: Italian Swimmers, Massimiliano Rosolino, Federica Pellegrini, Filippo Magnini, Ren Gusperti, Alessia Filippi, Emilio Polli, 2010, LLC Books

Link

• Polli Corporation
• List of Italian records in swimmin
• Italian record progression 100 metres freestyle
• Italian record progression 200 metres freestyle
• List of multi-sport athletes

External links

• Emilio Polli's profile at Sports Reference.com
• Report on Italian Olympic swimmers Template:It icon
• Olympic committee, 1924 VIII^me Olympiade, 1924 ([2])
• Olympic committee, 1928, The Ninth Olympiad Amsterdam 1928 Official Report, 1928 ([3]), where it competes with Johnny Weissmuller
• Agenda Diana: la scheda con i suoi risultati
• Comitato Olimpico Francese, VIII^me Olympiade, 1924 (versione digitalizzata) where it competes with Johnny Weissmuller
• Il Littoriale del 3/09/1928
• La biblioteca digitale dello sport (I)
• La biblioteca digitale dello sport (II)
• Louis S. Nixdorff, 1928 Olympic games collection, 1926–1978, Archives Center, National Museum of US History, Smithsonian Institution

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