Giliante D'Este

Giliante D’Este rowed on the Italian coxed four boat at the 1928 Olympics. The crew came from the Società Nautica “Pullino” di Isola d’Istria, named after the submarine of Italian war hero Nazario Sauro. After two victories at the 1927-28 Italian Championships with the coxed fours, the boat was selected for the Olympic Games in Amsterdam. The Italians were the class of the field, beating the Swiss in the two-boat final by 15.6 seconds. In the same event, D’Este collected three European titles (1929, 1931, 1933) and a second place (1930). He won bronze in the coxless fours at the 1932 Olympics, after winning another Italian Championship. D’Este won additional Italian titles and participated in his third Olympics in Berlin. D’Este was a carpenter who was born on the Italian peninsula of Istria, which produced most of the successful Italian rowers in that era.