Giro di Castelbuono The Castello dei Ventimiglia sits at the centre of the small town
Date Late July Location Castelbuono , Italy Event type Road Distance 11.2 km Established 2000 Official site Official website
The Giro di Castelbuono (officially Giro Podistico Internazionale Castelbuono ) is an annual road running competition over 10 kilometres which takes place in Castelbuono , on the island of Sicily , Italy . First held in 1912, the competition, which holds IAAF Gold Label Road Race status, is one of the oldest road races in Europe ,[ 1] which is the inspiration for the event's nickname – "La Corsa Più Antica " (The Oldest Race ).[ 2] The race, typically held on (or around) July 26 to coincide with Saint Anne 's Day, has been held almost every year since its inauguration, although the two World Wars interrupted the event over those periods.[ 3] [ 4] The race has been broadcast every year for a decade by Italian television channel Rai Sport Più .[ 5]
From 2011 onwards, the race departed from its long-standing original distance of 11.3 kilometres and switched to a certified 10 km circuit.[ 6] From 1912 to 2010, the course of the race followed a looped pattern of ten laps of roughly 1.13 km around the historical centre of the town. The start and end point of the race was at Piazza Margherita. Beginning at the square, the route went south along Via Roma and into Via Mario Levante. It then went east along Via Camillo Benso Conte Di Cavour before heading back north along Via Vittorio Emanuele II . The course then followed Via Umberto I in a north-westerly direction which arrives back at the starting point.[ 7] The race is a challenging one for athletes as they must contend with a difficult uphill section on each lap.[ 8]
Over the history of the event, the Giro di Castelbuono has attracted many of the sport's top athletes. Among the past winners are former world record holders Khalid Khannouchi and Paul Tergat , three-time London Marathon winner Martin Lel , and four-time road running World Champion Zersenay Tadese . The pre-international era of the race also featured prominent runners, including Gelindo Bordin , Orlando Pizzolato , Venanzio Ortis , Franco Fava , as well as Sicily's own Luigi Zarcone .[ 5] While the competition has principally been a men's race throughout its existence, a women's race was featured on the programme from 1995 to 2004. Winners of this short-lived race included Rome Marathon winner Gloria Marconi , Florence Marathon winner Florence Barsosio and multiple Major Marathon champion Margaret Okayo .[ 9]
Past winners
National era
Edition
Year
Men's winner
Time (m :s )
Club
1st
1912
Giovanni Blanchetè
51:36
S.S. Ercole Palermo
2nd
1913
Giovanni Blanchetè
50:15
S.S. Ercole Palermo
3rd
1914
Sgr. Scelta
48:20
S.S. Sport Club Palermo
—
1915–1919
Not held due to World War I
4th
1920
Ignazio Militello
?
S.S. Sport Club Termini Imerese
5th
1921
Agatino Mascali
44:40
S.S. Pro Etna Catania
6th
1922
Agatino Mascali
42:50
S.S. Pro Etna Catania
7th
1923
Agatino Mascali
43:10
S.S. Pro Etna Catania
8th
1924
Agatino Mascali
42:10
S.S. Pro Etna Catania
9th
1925
Gaetano Spreafico
41:26
S.S. Pro Patria Busto Arsizio
10th
1926
Gaetano Spreafico
?
S.S. Pro Patria Busto Arsizio
11th
1927
Gaetano Citarrella
41:30
Ferriera Ercta Palermo
12th
1928
Gaetano Citarrella
41:55
M.V.S.N. Palermo
—
1929–30
Not held
13th
1931
Giuseppe Lombardo
42:20
F.G. Reggio Calabria
14th
1932
Domenico La Bianca
41:08
S.S. Unione S. Italia Palermo
15th
1933
Domenico La Bianca
41:50
S.S. Unione S. Italia Palermo
16th
1934
Domenico La Bianca
41:00
S.S. Unione S. Italia Palermo
17th
1935
Ercole Morello
?
S.S. Sport Club Palermo
—
1936
Not held
18th
1937
Salvatore Merlino
?
F.G. Bagheria
19th
1938
Nicola Ruggeri
?
G.U.F. Messina
20th
1939
Nicola Ruggeri
?
G.U.F. Messina
—
1940–41
Not held due to World War II
21st
1942
Antonio Fontana
?
VV.FF. Palermo
—
1943–45
Not held due to World War II
22nd
1946
Sgr. Renda
?
G.P.U. Messina
23rd
1947
Giovanni Cultrone
39:40
S.S. Fiamma Vittoria
24th
1948
Giulio Panico
38:35
G.S. Sangiovannese Napoli
25th
1949
Giovanni Cultrone
?
S.S. Fiamma Vittoria
26th
1950
Giovanni Cultrone
?
S.S. Fiamma Vittoria
27th
1951
Pietro Balistreri
39:45
Corpo VV.FF. Palermo
28th
1952
Antonino Calderone
?
C.A.S. Termini Imerese
29th
1953
Antonino Calderone
?
C.A.S. Termini Imerese
30th
1954
Domenico Cappuccio
?
C.S.I. Maurolico Messina
31st
1955
Giovanni Cultrone
?
U.S. Fiamma Vittoria
32nd
1956
Stefano Bucolo
?
Alt. Falcone Novara
33rd
1957
Carmelo Di Stefano
40:55
C.S.I. Messina
—
1958
Not held
34th
1959
Tommaso Assi
38:17
C.S. Ass. Generali Palermo
35th
1960
Mario Longo
?
Libertas Catania
36th
1961
Stefano Bucolo
38:27
Alt. Falcone Novara
37th
1962
Felice Scotto
38:13
U.S. Polimeni Reggio Calabria
38th
1963
Antonino Buffa
41:09
Libertas Catania
39th
1964
Francesco Sabatino
38:11
Libertas Catania
40th
1965
Benedetto Mastroieni
37:42
Telestar Palermo
41st
1966
Giuseppe Ardizzone
37:06
Mongibello Catania
42nd
1967
Benedetto Mastroieni
39:00
Corpo VV.FF. Palermo
43rd
1968
Francesco Amante
37:00
Libertas Catania
44th
1969
Vito Riolo
36:40
Libertas Catania
45th
1970
Gioacchino De Palma
36:12
CUS Bari
46th
1971
Francesco Amante
36:17
CUS Torino
47th
1972
Francesco Amante
36:21
CUS Torino
48th
1973
Giuseppe Ardizzone
35:38
S.S. Alco Rieti
49th
1974
Michelangelo Arena
34:45
Polisportiva Atletica Palermo
50th
1975
Paolo Accaputo
34:54
Fiamme Gialle Roma
51st
1976
Luigi Zarcone
34:27
CUS Palermo
52nd
1977
Franco Fava
34:10
Fiamme Gialle Roma
53rd
1978
Venanzio Ortis
34:22
Fiamme Oro Padova
54th
1979
Orlando Pizzolato
34:40
Lemar Schio
55th
1980
Claudio Solone
33:45
Carabinieri Bologna
56th
1981
Claudio Solone
33:46
Carabinieri Bologna
57th
1982
Michelangelo Arena
34:07
Fiamme Gialle Roma
58th
1983
Orlando Pizzolato
34:50
Champion Ferrara
59th
1984
Orlando Pizzolato
33:34
Champion Ferrara
60th
1985
Salvatore Nicosia
33:56
Fiamme Gialle Roma
61st
1986
Salvatore Nicosia
34:03
Fiamme Gialle Roma
62nd
1987
Gelindo Bordin
33:27
Alitrans Verona
63rd
1988
Gelindo Bordin
33:27
Alitrans Verona
64th
1989
Salvatore Bettiol
32:45
CUS Ferrara
International era
Kenyan Paul Tergat is a two-time men's winner.
Spain's Chema Martínez became the first European man to win in the international era in 2007.
The course distances are 11.3 km for men and 5.6 km for women, unless stated otherwise
Key:
Course record
10 km course
4.5 km course
See also
References
List of winners
Further reading
Lirio Abbate & Rosario Mazzola, La storia del giro podistico internazionale di Castelbuono , Promos Editore (1994). (in Italian)
External links
Editions Platinum
Gold
Elite
Label
Marathon Half marathon 20K 7 mile 10K 4.7 mile 5K 1 mile
37°55′57″N 14°05′15″E / 37.9324°N 14.0875°E / 37.9324; 14.0875