Francesco Fortunato Breaks 5000m Race Walk World Record at Italian Indoor Championships

The Italian Athletics Indoor Championships in Ancona, held on February 22-23, delivered a spectacle of outstanding performances, headlined by Francesco Fortunato’s record-breaking feat in the 5000m race walk. The event showcased Italy’s top athletes across various disciplines, with numerous personal bests, national records, and world-class achievements marking the competition.

Fortunato Shatters Long-Standing 5000m Race Walk Record

European 20km race walk bronze medallist Francesco Fortunato made history by breaking the world indoor 5000m race walk record with a sensational time of 17:55.65. His performance eclipsed the previous record of 18:07.08 set by Michail Shennikov in 1995. Additionally, Fortunato surpassed Ivano Brugnetti’s Italian national record of 18:08.86, set in 2007. Passing the 3000m mark in 10:54 and covering the final kilometer in 3:29, he became the first athlete in history to break the 18-minute barrier.

Francesco Fortunato: “I dreamed of breaking the Italian record held by Ivano Brugnetti, but to break the world record as well is unbelievable. Brugnetti came so close to Shennikov’s mark, missing it by just one second. To achieve this today is an incredible moment in my career—I killed two birds with one stone.”

Other Notable Performances

Women’s 3000m Race Walk

Federica Curiazzi claimed victory in the women’s 3000m race walk, setting a personal best of 12:17.08.

Men’s Shot Put

European outdoor champion Leonardo Fabbri secured his sixth Italian indoor title with a throw of 21.85m, edging out training partner Zane Weir by nine centimeters. Weir initially led with 21.76m in the second round, but Fabbri responded with his winning throw in the fourth attempt. He also recorded additional throws over 21 meters, including 21.69m and 21.73m, while producing a long but invalid attempt.

Leonardo Fabbri: “That foul attempt was huge—close to my Italian indoor record. Training with Zane Weir pushes me to be better every day. My coach, Paolo Dal Soglio, was happy with my performance but believes I can improve even further.”

Men’s Triple Jump

Andrea Dallavalle, the European outdoor silver medallist, won the men’s triple jump with a personal best of 17.36m, moving to second in the world indoor seasonal rankings and securing his place as Italy’s fourth-best performer of all time.

Andrea Dallavalle: “After facing injuries and setbacks in recent years, I lost confidence. I twisted my ankle in 2023, missing two seasons, but I resumed my training just two months ago. This result means a lot.”

Women’s 60m Sprint

World indoor bronze medallist Zaynab Dosso clinched her third Italian indoor title with a time of 7.07, narrowly missing her seasonal best by 0.02. She had already demonstrated her strong form earlier this season by winning two World Indoor Tour races in Belgrade (7.12) and Torun (7.05), marking the second-fastest European time this year behind Mujinga Kambundji’s 7.03.

Zaynab Dosso: “Being second on the European seasonal list no longer pressures me. I feel confident in my training and have learned to manage injury prevention effectively.”

Men’s 60m Sprint

Yassin Bandaogo triumphed in the men’s 60m final with a time of 6.69, winning a close race against Stephen Baffour by just 0.01. This marked Bandaogo’s second national title of the year following his victory at the Italian U23 Championships, where he clocked a personal best of 6.63.

Men’s and Women’s 400m

Luca Sito, the Italian outdoor record holder, claimed his first national indoor title in the 400m with an Italian U23 record of 46.15, moving to third on the Italian all-time indoor list. In the women’s 400m, Alice Mangione won in 52.20, following her Italian indoor record-breaking performance of 51.75 in Karlsruhe earlier in the month.

Men’s High Jump

Matteo Sioli claimed his first senior national title in the men’s high jump, clearing a personal best of 2.28m on his third attempt. Sioli, who won the world U20 silver medal in Lima 2024 with a jump of 2.23m, edged out Manuel Lando, who came close at 2.28m after a flawless series up to 2.26m.

Women’s Long Jump

European outdoor silver medallist Larissa Iapichino won her fourth Italian indoor title with two identical jumps of 6.69m. She had previously recorded a seasonal best of 6.86m in Padua on February 9, ranking third in the world seasonal list behind Malaika Mihambo (7.07m) and Antaya Charlton (6.98m).

Men’s Long Jump

Sixteen-year-old Daniele Inzoli stunned the competition by winning his first senior national title in the men’s long jump, setting a new Italian indoor U18 record with a leap of 7.93m.

Pole Vault and Triple Jump Events

• Matteo Olivieri soared to a personal best of 5.70m to claim the men’s pole vault title.
• Roberta Bruni secured her sixth indoor national title in the women’s pole vault, clearing 4.58m on her third attempt, ahead of Olympic finalist Elisa Molinarolo (4.48m).
• World U20 bronze medallist Erika Saraceni took home her first senior national title in the women’s triple jump, setting a new Italian U20 record with 13.71m.

Women’s 60m Hurdles

Giada Carmassi won the women’s 60m hurdles in 8.02, narrowly missing her personal best by 0.02 seconds.

Middle-Distance Events

Eloisa Coiro continued her dominance in the women’s 800m, securing her third consecutive indoor national title with a time of 2:02.15, following her World Indoor Tour Gold victory in Belgrade on January 29.

Ludovica Cavalli completed an impressive double victory in the 1500m (4:11.37) and 3000m (9:03.66), mirroring Federico Riva’s achievements in the men’s events, where he won the 1500m (3:54.37) and 3000m (7:57.12).

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