Cross della Vallagarina

Cross della Vallagarina
The race is held in the valley around the city of Rovereto
DateMid-January
LocationVilla Lagarina - Rovereto, Italy
Event typeCross country
Distance9 km for men
5.3 km for women
Established1978
Official siteCross della Vallagarina
Participants50 (2020)
44 (2019)

The Cross della Vallagarina is an annual cross country running competition that is held in mid-January in Rovereto, Italy. The competition derives its name from the Vallagarina valley in which the city is located. It was first held in 1978 following the success of local runner Cristina Tomasini at the 1977 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.[1] She was the inaugural winner of the Cross della Vallagarina, which was unusual in being a women's competition only – the men's race was added later in 1981.[2][3]

The Cross della Vallagarina is part of the European Athletics permit meeting series,[4] and has also previously been part of the Italian national circuit.[5] It hosted the Italian Cross Country Championships in 2005 and 2007.[6] The race is organised by the local sports club U.S. Quercia Rovereto, which also hosts the city's annual track and field meeting (Palio Città della Quercia) and Giro Podistico di Rovereto road race.[3]

The current elite men's and women's races are held over 8.8 km and 5.5 km, respectively. The women's competition in 1978 began as a contest over 5 km and has remained roughly this distance throughout its history, except for a brief period where it was extended from 2005 to 2007. The men's race started as an 8 km event, but it has been mostly between 9–10 km for the majority of editions.[2] The competition's looped course features a number of uphill and downhill sections along the valley's edge, making it a difficult race for some athletes.[7][8][9] In addition to the elite level races, there are also several races for fun runners and amateurs, ranging from youth competitions to races for masters athletes.[10]

Past winners of the event include some of Italy's most successful runners, including Olympic marathon champion Gelindo Bordin, 1987 World Champion Francesco Panetta, Gabriella Dorio (Olympic gold medallist in the 1500 m) and two-time 5000 m global medallist Roberta Brunet. Foreign winners of the event include multiple European Cross champion Serhiy Lebid, world steeplechase champions Wilson Boit Kipketer and Dorcus Inzikuru, and World Half Marathon champion Wilson Kiprop.[11]

  1. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2011-01-17). Longosiwa and Birtukane take commanding victories in Vallagarina XC. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-28.
  2. ^ a b Civai, Franco (2011-01-17). Cross della Vallagarina. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  3. ^ a b La Nostra Storia Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian). U.S. Quercia Rovereto. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  4. ^ Results European Athletics Cross Country Permit Races 2010/11 Archived 2011-03-12 at the Wayback Machine. European Athletics. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  5. ^ 31st Cross Internazionale della Vallagarina. European Athletics (2008-01-11). Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  6. ^ IL GRANDE CROSS IN VALLAGARINA (in Italian). Genova Press (2011-01-11). Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  7. ^ Percorso Archived 2018-10-30 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian). U.S. Quercia Rovereto. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  8. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2009-01-18). Kiprop and Dal Ri the winners in Villa Lagarina Cross Country. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  9. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2010-01-17). Ethiopian sweep at the Cross della Vallagarina. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  10. ^ Il nuovo programma completo Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine (in Italian). U.S. Quercia Rovereto. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.
  11. ^ Sampaolo, Diego (2006-01-20). International fields return - Vallagarina Cross Country preview. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-25.