| Roles | Competed in Olympic Games |
|---|---|
| Sex | Male |
| Full name | Giovanni•Parisi |
| Used name | Giovanni•Parisi |
| Nick/petnames | Flash |
| Born | 2 December 1967 in Vibo Valentia, Vibo Valentia (ITA) |
| Died | 25 March 2009 (aged 41 years 3 months 23 days) in Voghera, Pavia (ITA) |
| Measurements | 168 cm / 57 kg |
| NOC |  Italy |
| Medals | OG |
| Gold | 1 |
| Silver | 0 |
| Bronze | 0 |
| Total | 1 |
After overpowering Daniel Dumitrescu in the 1988 Olympic featherweight final, Giovanni Parisi soon turned pro. In 1993, grabbed the vacant WBO lightweight title, defending it twice successfully before abandoning it in 1994 to move up to the light welterweight. A shot at the WBC belt in that class failed, but he gained the WBO title in 1996 in a technical knockout over Sammy Fuentes.
He received in 1997 the Collare d’Oro for Sporting Merit from the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI).
He defended his title five times, before losing it to Carlos González in 1998. Now marred by injuries, the best years of his career were over. After a failed attempt at the WBO welterweight title in 2000 and an embarrasing defeat in an EBU welterweight title bout, Parisi called it a career.
His life was tragically cut short when he was involved in a head-on collision with a truck near his home in Voghera.
| Games | Discipline (Sport) / Event | NOC / Team | Pos | Medal | As | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 Summer Olympics | Boxing | ITA |
Giovanni Parisi | |||
| Featherweight, Men (Olympic) | 1 | Gold |
