The Cinque Mulini is an annual

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and soil, earth, pass through woodlands and ope ...

race in San Vittore Olona,

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. First held in 1933, the course is unusual in that it revolves around a number of water mills along Olona river, which lend the competition its name – meaning ''Five Mills'' in

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

.Cinque Mulini: Italy's bonkers cross country race
. Spikes Magazine. Retrieved on 2009-10-20. It is one of the

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international sports governing body, governing body for the sport ...

cross country permit meetings that act as qualifiers for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.Cross Country Permit Meets

(2009). Retrieved on 2009-10-20. As one of the most prestigious meets, numerous

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

holders and

Olympic champion This article includes lists of all Olympic medalists since 1896, organized by each Olympic sport or discipline, and also by Olympiad. Medalist with most medals by sport Summer Olympic sports Sports that will appear in the 2028 Summer Olympics ar ...

s have competed at the Cinque Mulini throughout its history.

History

Giovanni Malerba organised the first competition in 1933 as a reaction to a competition in a neighbouring village which revolved around seven clock towers. The competition has been held every year since its inception, including throughout the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and in 1939 when the

Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera The Italian Athletics Federation (Italian language, Italian: ''Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera'', FIDAL), is the governing body for Athletics (sport), athletics in Italy since 1906. The Italian Federation, founded on 21 October 1906, on ...

(FIDAL) ordered that all cross country competitions be postponed.History of Cinque Mulini
. Cinque Mulini. Retrieved on 2010-02-05. The course was altered from 10 km to 12 in the late 1930s, in order to accommodate all five mills. The race began to grow after being selected as the course for the Italian Cross Country Championship in 1946 and 1949. The competition became an international one in 1952 and

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

n runner Ahmed Labidi became the first foreign winner two years later. By the early 1960s, Olympic silver medallist Franjo Mihalić had brought the race to new heights, taking three victories over five editions. A junior race was introduced in 1960, the first international women's race was held in 1971, and student races were added to the program in the late 1970s. Olympic and World champions graced the course at every edition in the 1970s. By the mid-eighties,

East Africa East Africa, also known as Eastern Africa or the East of Africa, is a region at the eastern edge of the Africa, African continent, distinguished by its unique geographical, historical, and cultural landscape. Defined in varying scopes, the regi ...

n runners had established themselves, frequently reaching the podium in the senior races. It was part of the IAAF World Cross Challenge the following decade, remaining at the forefront of European cross country running. The course was significantly changed throughout the 2000s, only the Cozzi and Meraviglia mills remained as part of the course and gradually only the semi-functioning Meraviglia was included. Both former champion

David Bedford David Vickerman Bedford (4 August 1937 – 1 October 2011) was an English composer and musician. He wrote and played both popular and classical music. He was the brother of the conductor Steuart Bedford, the grandson of the composer, painter ...

and meet organiser Vito Garofalo stressed that the competition's longevity is due to, in part, the support the race receives from the local community. The race was elected to serve as the Italian national cross country championships in 1996;

Gennaro Di Napoli Gennaro Di Napoli (born 5 March 1968) is an Italian former middle distance runner. He won 13 medals at the International athletics competitions, 10 of these at senior level. Biography Di Napoli was born in Naples but moved early in his life t ...

and Patrizia Di Napoli took the honours.Cinque Mulini
ARRS (2010-02-03). Retrieved on 2010-02-05. The event hosted the European Cross Country Club Championships alongside the traditional race in 2011; Portuguese club Grupo Desportivo e Recreativo Conforlimpa won the men's team title while the women's title went to Turkey's Üsküdar Belediyesi Spor Kulübü.

Past senior race winners

National era

International era

Statistics

Winners by country

Multiple winners

*''Last updated January 2016''

References

;General
Cinque Mulini Men's winners
Cinque Mulini. Retrieved on 2010-02-05.
Cinque Mulini Women's winners
Cinque Mulini. Retrieved on 2010-02-05. ;Specific

External links

Official website
{{IAAF Cross Country Meetings Cross country running competitions Athletics competitions in Italy Recurring sporting events established in 1933 Sport in Lombardy Cross country running in Italy Annual sporting events in Italy 1933 establishments in Italy Winter in Italy