The first edition of the Absolute Challenge took place at 9:00am outside the "Luigi Ridolfi" Marathon Stadium in Florence.
As already mentioned in the news a few days ago, the Challenge's main objective is to assign 5 participation wild cards for the next Absolute Italian Championships in Rieti, to be added to the first 11 athletes admitted for times obtained from the specialty ranking in force at 12. June.
10km men
The parterre is certainly not that of the best Italian athletes.
In fact, the first eight athletes who have achieved a time of 10,000m on the track in the season are missing, while the 9th is present: Andrea Cosi (42: 18.96)
Obviously, all the first eleven athletes who achieved a 10km time on the road during the season are missing.
The star of the day is therefore Andrea Cosi, fresh from last Saturday's good performance in La Coruna, where he improved his personal best on the 20km, lowering it by almost 2 minutes.
The twenty-one year old Tuscan athlete trained by Ugolini, has already competed four times this season on the 20km with always very interesting results:
- January 16: Pescara - 3rd in 1:23:51 which until last Saturday was his personal best
- March 5: Muscat, OMA - 24th in 1:27:57
- 1 May: Alberobello - 4th in 1:25:25
- May 28: La Coruna - 1:21:59 in a brilliant comeback race
Since 25 June last year Andrea Cosi has been having a notable improvement both from a chronometric and technical point of view, which saw him overcome the two experiences of Muscat and La Coruna, immune from yellow pallets and red cards, and limiting to one red card those of Pescara and Alberobello also with the presence of an international jury in addition to the Italian one.
It is difficult to explain to the athlete's technician and to the athlete himself that today at a pace that for him represented little more than a training in the first 4km he collected two red cards and had to limit his pace which, however, would not have taken away the victory even if a sudden third red card forced him to stop in the penalty zone of 60 seconds.
His gap on the runner-up is at the end of the race has been 2:44.61 which would have protected him from any stop.
Victory then for Andrea Cosi in 42:11.17 (42:12) his third time ever on 10km after the personal best in Rovereto (40:58, 25.6.2021) and after 42:05 obtained in Modena, ITA on 18.10. 2020 to the Italian U20 Champions.
Second place to Gabriele Gamba in 44:55.78 (44:56) a little subdued compared to the personal best of 42:30 obtained in Podebray (CZE) on 16.5.2021
Third place went to Juriy Micheletti (ITA) in 44:58.74 (44:59)
10km women
Also in this race the parterre of the athletes at the start had only three well-known names at the start: Lidia Barcella, Beatrice Foresti and Mariavittoria Becchetti who returned to compete after almost a year.
Lidia Barcella starts at the head of the race and the others let her go: she will never be reached again.
Victory for Lidia Barcella in 49:07.11 (49:08)
Second place to Beatrice Foresti in 50:49.65 (50:50)
Third place to Mariavittoria Becchetti in 51:14.30 (51:15)
(Photos by Francesca Grana per Fidal)
Risultati Ufficiali - Official results