Last Sunday the 27th of January 2019, the annual Cinque Mulini cross country race was held in San Vittore Olona, Italy. This however was no ordinary cross country race. Along the 9.8 km course for men and 5.5 km for women, participants have to negotiate fields, farm yards and buildings!
It is described as follows..."The athletes would run through the buildings, the wheel slowly turning under the weight of water flowing down from the nearby Alps. The runners emerge to cross a narrow wooden foot bridge, then continue round the farm buildings, through a yard and through another building, passing through a doorway beneath a mural of the Virgin Mary. It was–is–a race with a character of its own: uniquely Italian, beautiful and poignant, and loaded with history."
Since it was first held in 1933, it has attracted some of the worlds top runners.Legend has it that when Seb Coe ran there in 1980, he mistook the the 'Cinque Mulini' (Five Mills) for 5 miles and thought it was a road race he had entered!
Top US runner Jenny Simpson said this of the event..."When I got to Italy and saw the course for the first time, my initial reaction was “this is absurd.” We were literally running through fields, in and out of ditches, and of course, through someone’s house and mills. I knew the course was different but seeing is believing."..... "But the entire experience was so worth it and I have the best memories from the event ."
There is a really good article about the race which is worth a read on the Tracksmith website... https://journal.tracksmith.com/the-cinque-mulini-meter-00-198f0e217985
Race website... https://www.5mulini.org
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