Antonietta Di Martino

Antonietta Di Martino (born 1 June 1978 in Cava de' Tirreni) is a retired Italian high jumper. She currently holds the Italian national women's high jump record at 2.03 metres for outdoor events and 2.04 metres for indoor events. She also currently holds the women's all-time highest jump-differential, meaning she has jumped the highest (0.35 metres) more than her own height.
Her first significant international achievement was winning silver medal at the 2007 European Indoor Championships in Birmingham. In the same year, she won the silver medal at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka. After a disappointing Olympics in Beijing, she won her first gold medal at the European Indoor Championships in 2011 in Paris and the bronze medal at the 2011 World Championships in Daegu. In 2012 she won another silver medal at the World Indoor Championships in Istanbul. In September 2009, she married Massimiliano Di Matteo, who also has been acting as her coach since marriage.

Early years (1990–2001)

Her athletics history began at the age of 12 at the Youth Games, which highlighted her beginnings. Coincidentally, the high jump was not her first specialty. For much of her youth, she practiced the javelin throw and continued trying for multiple disciplines. She debuted in the national team for heptathlon in the European Cup in 2001.

Early achievements(2001–2006)

Her skills as a high jumper were first discovered in July 2001, during the Italian Championship in Catania when her jump raised her personal best from 1.93 to 1.98 meters, thus equalling the personal best of accomplished Italina high-jumper Antonella Bevilacqua. A month later, she was able to reach the world finals where she finished twelfth at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton. In 2006, she finished fifth at the World Indoor Championships in Moscow and tenth at the European Championships in Gothenburg.

The Golden year - 2007

In February 2007, she cleared 2.00 metres in Banská Bystrica, breaking Sara Simeoni's previous Italian indoor record of 1.98 m. She followed this up with a silver medal at the 2007 European Indoor Championships, where she jumped 1.96 m.

Di Martino also won the silver medal at 2007 World Championships, having jumped 2.03 m. Her 2008 season was not so successful and she managed only the tenth position at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and closed the year carrying a serious toe injury, making her consider retiring from the sport.

Her return (2009–2012)

Di Martino in action at ISTAF (2010)

In September 2009, she changed coaches, leaving Davide Sessa for husband Massimiliano Di Matteo and this marked a resurgence in her form. She won the Italian Indoor Championships, but illness ruled her out of the 2009 European Indoor Championships a few months later. She took bronze at the 2009 European Team Championships and soon after, she beat Blanka Vlašić to win the Golden Gala meeting, jumping 2.00 m in Rome. She cleared 1.99 m at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics, securing a fourth-place finish. She capped off the year with a bronze at the final edition of the World Athletics Final and married her new coach Di Matteo.

Antonietta Di Martino won the gold medal at the 2010 European Team Championships, but did not even pass the qualifying round at the 2010 European Athletics Championships. She rebounded at the start of the 2011 season, jumping to an Italian indoor record of 2.04 m in Banská Bystrica in Slovakia. She continued with her good form in March by winning the European Indoor Championship in Paris with 2.01 m.

Records and achievements

Her personal best outdoor jump is 2.03 metres, achieved on 24 June 2007, in Milan by surpassing her own previous Italian record of 2.02 m, while her best indoor result came at an indoor high jump meeting in Slovakia on 9 February 2011 with a new national record of 2.04 m. Standing at only 1.69 m, this jump is the unofficial women's world record for the highest jump over her own height (at 35 cm). Di Martino used to be active in heptathlon, achieving a personal best of 5542 points (2001).

Missing the 2012 Summer Olympics

Di Martino suffered an injury on her knee in April 2012, just four months before the Olympic Games. She was forced to stop training for a period of time. However, the National Athletics Federation (FIDAL) underestimate the nature of the injury, which was diagnosed in the three weeks of rehabilitation. But less than a month before the Olympics, they came to know that the injury was more serious than expected, forcing her to undergo surgery, ruling her out of London. Her knee surgery was performed just a few days before the race in the Olympics high jump.

Her husband and coach Massimiliano Di Matteo, in an interview, accused the FIDAL have underestimated the nature of the injury and failing to ensure an athlete who has contributed immensely to Italian sport the right care at the time of rehabilitation.

• High jump outdoor: 2.03 m ( Milan, 24 June 2007 and Osaka, 2 September 2007) - current holder
• High jump indoor: 2.04 m ( Banská Bystrica, 9 February 2009) - current holder

Di Martino celebrates her silver medal at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka

The podium of 2012 World Indoor Championships in Istanbul

International championships

Amtonietta Di Martino made 12 career jumps over 2.00 m (bolded in the table).

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Measure	Note
2001	World Championships	Edmonton	12th	High jump	1,85 m
2006	World Indoor Championships	Moscow	5th	High jump	1,96 m
	European Championships	Gothenburg	10th	High jump	1,92 m
2007	European Indoor Championships	Birmingham	2nd	High jump	1,96 m
	World Championships	Ozaka	2nd	High jump	2,03 m
2008	World Indoor Championships	Valencia	7th	High jump	1,93 m
	European Cup	Annecy	2nd	High jump	1,95 m
	Olympic Games	Beijing	10th	High jump	1.93 m
2009	European Team Championships	Leiria	3d	High jump	2,00 m
	Mediterranean Games	Pescara	1st	High jump	1,97 m
	World Championships	Berlin	4th	High jump	1,99 m
2010	European Team Championships	Bergen	1st	High jump	2,00 m
	Diamond League		2nd	High jump	details
2011	European Indoor Championships	Paris	1st	High jump	2,01 m
	World Championships	Daegu	3d	High jump	2,00 m
2012	World Indoor Championships	Istanbul	2nd	High jump	1,95 m

Others meetings and championships

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Measure	Note
2006	British Grand Prix	Gateshead	3rd	High jump	1,94 m
	Golden Gala	Rome	11th	High jump	1,80 m
	Memorial Van Damme	Bruxelles	5th	High jump	1,95 m
2007	Europa SC High Jump	Banská Bystrica	2nd	High jump	2,00 m
	Memorial Primo Nebiolo	Torino	1st	High jump	2,02 m
	Bislett Games	Oslo	6th	High jump	1,90 m
	European Cup (first league)	Milano	1st	High jump	2,03 m
	IAAF World Athletics Final	Stuttgart	2nd	High jump	1,97 m
2009	Golden Gala	Rome	1st	High jump	2,00 m
	IAAF World Athletics Final	Thessaloniki	3rd	High jump	1,97 m
2010	Golden Gala	Rome	2nd	High jump	1,95 m
	Italian Athletics Championships	Grosseto	1st	High jump	2,01 m
2011	Europa SC High Jump	Banska Bystrica	1st	High jump	2,04 m
	Spanish Athletics Championships	Málaga	1st	High jump	2,00 m
	Rieti Meeting	Rieti	1st	High jump	1,96 m

Antonietta Di Martino has won the individual national championship 10 times.

• 6 wins in High jump outdoor (2000, 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010)
• 4 wins in High jump indoor (2003, 2006, 2007, 2009)

• ""CAMPIONATI "ASSOLUTI" ITALIANE SUL PODIO TRICOLORE – 1923 2012" (PDF). sportolimpico.it. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2012. 
• "ITALIAN INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS". gbrathletics.com. 2012. Retrieved 16 November 2012. 

Antonietta Di Martino ranked 15 times in the top 25 of the world for the season list. Her 2.04 m indoor is also the 8th best performance of all-time.

All time lists of athletes with the highest recorded jumps above their own height.

	Athlete	Born	Tall	Jump	Year	Diff.
1	Antonietta Di Martino	1978	1.69	2.04i	2011	0.35
2	Kajsa Bergqvist	1976	1.75	2.08i	2006	0.33
	Niki Bakoyianni	1968	1.70	2.03	1998
4	Yolanda Henry	1964	1.68	2.00i	1990	0.32
	Emilia Dragieva	1965	1.68	2.00i	1987
6	Marie Collonvillé	1973	1.63	1.94	1997	0.31