| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Salvatore Marcello Rinella | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality |  Italy | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1975-02-27)27 February 1975 (age 50) Palermo, Italy | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft9+1⁄2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 74 kg (163 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Style | Freestyle | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Club | Fiamme Oro[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coach | Mauro Massaro[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Salvatore Marcello Rinella (Italian pronunciation:[salvaˈtoːreriˈnɛlla]; born 27 February 1975 inPalermo) is a retired amateur Italian freestyle wrestler, who competed in the men's middleweight category.[3] He won three bronze medals in the 69 and 74-kg division at theMediterranean Games (1997, 2001, and 2005), and also represented his nationItaly at the2004 Summer Olympics. Having worked as a police officer forPolizia di Stato, Rinella trained full-time for the wrestling squad atGruppo Sportivo Fiamme Oro inRome, under head coach Mauro Massaro.[2][4]
Rinella qualified for the Italian squad in themen's 74 kg class at the2004 Summer Olympics inAthens. Earlier in the process, Rinella received a ticket to the Olympics by defeating Tajikistan'sYusup Abdusalomov for a third spot at the Olympic Qualification Tournament inSofia, Bulgaria.[5][6] He easily ousted Australia'sAli Abdo in his opening match on technical superiority, but fell behind Belarus'Murad Haidarau by a 2–4 deficit at the end of the prelim pool. Finishing second in the pool and seventh overall, Rinella's performance was not enough to advance him to the quarterfinals.[7][8]
In 2005, Rinella overcame his Olympic setback with a third career bronze medal in the same class at theMediterranean Games inAlmería,Spain.[9] He also sought his bid for the2008 Summer Olympics inBeijing, but failed to earn a spot from the Olympic Qualification Tournament, effectively ending his sporting career.
