Alberto Cova

Last updated
Alberto Cova
Alberto Cova.jpg
Cova in 1987
Personal information
Nationality Italian
Born (1958-12-01) 1 December 1958 (age 65)
Inverigo, Italy
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight58 kg (128 lb)
Sport
Country Flag of Italy.svg Italy
Sport Athletics
Event Long distance running
Club Pro Patria Milano
Coached by Giorgio Rondelli
Achievements and titles
Personal bests
  • 5000 m: 13:10.06 (1985)
  • 10,000 m: 27:37.59 (1983)
Medal record
Event1st2nd3rd
Olympic Games 100
World Championships 100
European Championships 110
European Indoor Championships 010
Mediterranean Games 100
European Cup 211
Total631
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1984 Los Angeles 10,000 m
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1983 Helsinki 10,000 m
European Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1982 Athens 10,000 m
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1986 Stuttgart 10,000 m
European Indoor Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1982 Milan 3000 m
Mediterranean Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1983 Casablanca 5000 m

Alberto Cova (born 1 December 1958) is a retired Italian long-distance track athlete, winner of the 10,000 m at the 1984 Summer Olympics and 1983 World Championships.

Contents

Biography

Born in Inverigo, province of Como, Italy, Alberto Cova was characterized by his superiority in the sprint finish, and the only way to nullify this was to set a very fast pace from the start to finish. Cova got his first fame at the 1982 European Championships in Athens, where he surprisingly outsprinted the main favourite Werner Schildhauer from East Germany, to win his first international championship title. In the next year, Cova wasn't the main favourite at the first World Championships held in Helsinki, being considered only as a possible medal winner. The 10,000 m final at Helsinki was run in slow pace, with thirteen runners still in a leading pack at the bell. With only 30 metres to go, Cova was only in fifth place, but then sprinted forward to win. Schildhauer finished in second place. The top four runners sprinted to the finish line in 0.33 seconds.

The 10,000 m final at the Los Angeles Olympics began at an even slower pace than at Helsinki. At the 6 km mark, Martti Vainio from Finland, picked up the speed. Cova managed to follow him, and Vainio couldn't sustain his own pace, so Cova swept past him after the bell and sprinted to the line to win his last international title.

At the 1986 European Championships in Stuttgart, Cova was beaten at his own game, when he was outsprinted by fellow countryman Stefano Mei on the last lap of the 10,000 m final. Cova never won a major race after that, and came tenth in his heat (thereby failing to qualify for the final) at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. This was his last international competition.

In the 1983 World Athletics Championships 10,000-metre final, there actually were seven men in the lead group at the bell. In the 1984 Olympics 10,000-metre final, Finland's Martti Vainio picked up the speed shortly before the 6 kilometre mark

Achievements

YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventTimeNotes
1981 European Cup (Super League) Flag of Yugoslavia (1946-1992).svg Zagreb 6th5000 m13:45.48
1982 European Indoor Championships Flag of Italy.svg Milan 2nd3000 m 7:54.12
European Championships Flag of Greece.svg Athens DSQ 5000 m No time [N 1]
1st10,000 m 27:41.03
1983 World Championships Flag of Finland.svg Helsinki 1st10,000 m 28:01.04 [N 2]
European Cup (Super League) Flag of the United Kingdom.svg London 3rd5000 m13:55.59
2nd10,000 m28:02.13
1984 Olympic Games Flag of the United States.svg Los Angeles 1st10,000 m 27:47.54
1985 European Cup (Super League) Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Moscow 1st5000 m14:05.45
1st10,000 m28:51.46
1986 European Championships Flag of Germany.svg Stuttgart 8th5000 m 13:35,86 [N 3]
2nd10,000 m 27:57.93 [N 4] [1]
1988 Olympic Games Flag of South Korea.svg Seoul Heat10,000 m 28:43.84

National titles

He won fourteen national championships at senior level. [2] [3]

See also

Notes

  1. He ran in 13:27.65 in heats.
  2. He ran a better crono, 27:46.61, in heats.
  3. He ran a better crono, 13:31,18, in heats.
  4. In that edition of the European Championships Italy conquered all three steps of the podium, with Stefano Mei 1st and Salvatore Antibo 3rd.

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References

  1. "EUROPEAN ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS - STUTTGART 1986". european-athletics.org. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  2. "CAMPIONATI "ASSOLUTI" – UOMINI TUTTI I CAMPIONI – 1906-2016" (PDF). sportolimpico.it. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  3. "ITALIAN INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS". gbrathletics.com. Retrieved 27 September 2019.