15/10/2017   Grottammare (ITA): Perseus Karlstrom wins 20km






When this morning arrived the tweet of Miguel Calvo (ESP) that reminded the 95th anniversary of the first Spanish Championship in 50km, the curiosity was immediately going to find out how much the actors of that movie were.

 
When we found out that they start in 51 the first feeling we experienced was that of sadness.
 
Ninety-five years later, in another part of the Mediterranean, on a beautiful sunny day with a temperature that slowly reached 24°C, at the start of 46th trophy Serafino Orlini in Grottammarte there were only three Italian athlets in 50km. Thanks god than enriching the start list there was a Spanish and an athlete of Honduras, and two women (an Italian and a Spanish) also appeared at the start. So four Italian athletes in total.
 
During the first hour of the race we imagined to what it had represented for those 51 athletes in Barcelona 1922 and to the 50km Championship of Nov. 11, 1981 under the snow, won by Vittorio Visini on Sandro Bellucci so full of athletes at the start. And finally what they represented today these numbers for the organizer Vincenzo Ferretti of Ascoli Piceno: our sadness turned into depression.
Four participants (the number of past victories of Italian athletes at the Olympic Games in the 50km, but to win is more difficult than to participate) distributed in a 2,000m go and back on the gorgeous Grottammare seafront: stuff to spit out the skin.
 
Even the report of this 50km abnormality is really poor: three men (the two foreigners and one Italian) abandoning each other, the two women who imitate them and finally they remain in two.
About technical content we only say that he won Stefano Chiesa (ITA) in 4:16:01 (representing the 128th performance of the year and that, if you take more than one result for each single athlete, it becomes 166th) while silver went to Luca Montoleone (ITA) in 4:22:11 (respectively 141th performance or 189th if you take more than one result for each single athlete).
Incidentally, under the snow and on the ascent from San Benedetto to Ascoli Piceno on November 8, 1981, Vittorio Visini winner in 4:07:16, Sandro Bellucci (4:10:25), Paolo Grecucci (4:11:44) and also the fourth, Giancarlo Lisi (4:15:41) did better than today. But they were other times: 36 years ago !
 
 

 

 

 
 
20km men
 
Totally different the 20km of men.
Immediately headed by Federico Tontodonati (ITA) and Perseus Karlstrom (SWE).
They are together for the first ten kilometers walking shoulder to shoulder.
Behind them the pair: Leonardo Dei Tos (ITA) and Marco De Luca (ITA).
When after the 10km Perseus Karstrom forced the pace and with a beatiful walk goes to victory, Marco de Luca finally comes off Leonardo Dei Tos.
Again, the race is over.
Victory to Perseus Karlstrom (SWE) in 1:22:47.
Second place (first Italian): Federico Tontodonati (ITA) in 1:24:55
Third place to Marco De Luca (ITA) in 1:28:11
Fourth place to Cesare Cozza (ITA) in 1:30:46 in front of Alberto Zaupa (ITA) in 1:31:16
 
Of the 23 at the start 17 arrived, 2 DQ, 3 DNFs and one out of maximum time
 
 

 

 

 
 
20km women
 
She wins Valentina Trapletti (ITA), among other things, always beautiful to see, in 1:32:00
Second place to Nicole Colombi (ITA) in 1:35:55 completing the 20km and improving the 1:36:26 season best obtained in the European Cup in Podebrady on May 21, 2017.
Third place for a very beautiful to see Martina Ansaldi (ITA) in 1:39:32 which improves her personal best of 1:47:01 set in Grosseto on Jan. 29, 2017. Along with Valentina Trapletti, she was frankly the athlete we liked, with a smooth, beautiful walk and without any technical problems.
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
20km U20 men and women
 
- in men: Giacomo Brandi wins (1:30:17) without much difficulty on Davide Marchesi (1:35:57) and on Matteo Gallo (1:36:56)
- in women: Beatrice Foresti wins (1:53:48) on Maria Teresa Vulpis (1:56:34) and on Beatrice Andreose (1:58:18)
 
 
10km U18 boys and girls
 
- in boys: Davide Finocchietti wins (45:59) in front of Riccardo Orsoni (46:39) and Giorgio Giuliani (47:32)
- in girls: Ida Mastrangelo wins (51:20) in front of Andrade Lavinia Lacatus (51:42) and Simona Bertini (52:11)
 
 
3km U16 boys and girls
 
- in boys: wins Jacopo Capodifoglio (13:05) in front of Emiliano Brigante (13:13) and Gabriele Gamba (13:41)
- in girls: wins Angela Di Fabio (14:51) ahead of Martina Ticozzi (15:18) and Francesca Liviani (15:35)