In 50 years Caltanissetta, in central Sicily, has produced eight Olympians, 450 national champions and an endless stream of gold medallists.

The latest was Mirco Scarantino, who won the 56 kilogram under-23 title here.

He took his first continental title as a youth in 2011 and has also won junior and, in April this year, senior European golds.

Scarantino has twice competed at the Olympic Games, finishing 14th at London 2012 when at 17 he became Italy’s youngest Olympic lifter, and seventh this year in Rio. 

His father, Giovanni, competed at Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996, and at every Games since 1988 Caltanissetta has had at least one of its citizens lifting for Italy. 

It is a phenomenal achievement for a city with a population of just over 60,000.

"There is nowhere else in the world like it," said Antonio Urso, President of Italian Weightlifting and of the European Federation - and a Caltanissetta man himself.

"Nobody talks about football in Caltanissetta, only weightlifting. 

"Everybody knows all the rules, the champions, the latest news."

Scarantino, who now lives in Rome and trains full-time as part of the police department of sport, said he owed his success to his father, who had him hooked on the sport very young. 

"I first tried it with a broomstick when I was a baby, it was love at first sight," he said.

"I am proud to represent my city. 

"My efforts are always appreciated by the people - the whole city is always with me.

"My father was three times at the Olympics and I hope to do the same - and maybe win a medal next time." 

Scarantino says he will keep competing until he is 28 to 30 so he has at least one more Games in him, perhaps two.

The Caltanissetta region is renowned for its dry red wine and liqueurs, but it is weightlifting that has put the city on the map.

Four of Italy’s 16-strong team in Eilat are from Caltanissetta, and eight from Sicily.

Urso has written a book about his home town, "Weightlifting in Caltanissetta, History of a Social Phenomenon". 

The arrival of a coach from the north started things moving in the 1960s and, said Urso, genetics and social organisation played a big part in the weightlifting boom. 

Because of the many successes, tradition and history are now important factors, too.

Scarantino’s latest success was never in doubt. 

He did not start lifting until all his rivals had finished, making 113kg in the snatch and a personal best of 150kg in the clean and jerk.

His clean and jerk was only 5kg short of the European best held by the notorious Valentin Hristov, who holds all the 56kg continental records at youth, junior and under-23 level. 

Hristov, who switched from Bulgaria to Azerbaijan, was banned for eight years last year after multiple doping offences.

The overall silver went to Ilie Ciotoiu of Romania, 21kg behind Scarantino, and bronze to Russia’s Oleg Musokhranov.

There was more glory for Italy when Mirko Zanni - this time a northerner, from Friuli - took snatch gold in the only junior event of the day, the men’s 69kg. 

Zanni, who studies physical education in the army, made all six lifts but was overtaken in an exciting clean and jerk contest and finished second overall behind the impressive Celil Erdogdu of Turkey.

Erdogdu would have lost had Goga Chkheidze made his final attempt but the Georgian, who took clean and jerk gold with 170kg, failed at 176kg and finished third overall. 

In fourth place was another Turk, Ahmet Okyay, who was third in the snatch.

Italy had a third medallist of the day when Giorgia Russo, another Sicilian from Palermo, moved up from sixth after the snatch to third place overall in the under-23 women’s 53kg with a clean and jerk of 98kg.

There was a tight contest for gold between Spain’s Atenery Hernandez and Russia’s Irina Baymulkina. 

Hernandez, a top-six finisher in the past three senior European Championships, made all her lifts and would have had a clean sweep of golds but for Baymulkina’s decisive final clean and jerk of 104kg, which took her ahead on bodyweight. 

Baymulkina, 21, won European Junior titles at this weight in 2013 and 2014, went up to 58kg and finished third last year, then dropped back down again.

Norway won their second medal in two days when Sarah Ovsthus took snatch bronze before dropping to fourth overall.

Romania won the under-23 men’s 62kg when Ionut Ilie made six good lifts for a career-best total of 284kg.

Ilie, like Erdogdu cheered on by noisy team-mates in the crowd, finished well clear of two Georgians, Ramini Shamilishvili and Shota Mishvelidze, both of whom dropped away in the clean and jerk after finishing third and first respectively in the snatch. 

Clean and jerk silver went to Emre Buyukunlu of Turkey and bronze to Ion Terna of Moldova.

Buyukunlu had to take his final attempt twice because first time round the weights fell off the bar to his right. 

He failed both times.

In the under-23 women’s 48kg only 6kg separated all eight lifters after the snatch, with the top three all on 68kg: Danila Pandova of Bulgaria, Turkey’s Neslihan Catalca, and Katarzyna Feledyn of Poland.

Fourth-placed Nadia Iefimchuk of Ukraine, the 2015 Junior champion, made up ground in the clean and jerk to finish first overall. 

With six good lifts she totalled 156kg, with Pandova second on 155kg and Feledyn third on 150kg. 

Turkey’s Fatma Korkmaz took the clean and jerk bronze.