The World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships is a racewalking event organised by World Athletics. It has been held since 1961, and generally on a biennial basis. The first women's edition of the event happened in 1979. It was formerly known as the Lugano Cup after the city that hosted the first event, then became the IAAF World Race Walking Cup until 2016 and then IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships until 2018. In 2004, a junior division was added for athletes between 16 and 20. Since 2008 it has been a constituent meeting of the World Athletics Challenge – Race Walking.
Andrew Howe is an American-born Italian athlete who specializes in the long jump and sprinting. He won this event as well as the 200 metres at the 2004 World Junior Championships. He was successful at senior level at a young age, winning a long jump bronze at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships before becoming the European Champion later that year. In 2007 he became the European Indoor Champion and won the silver medal at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics.
Antonietta Di Martino is a retired Italian high jumper. She currently holds the Italian national women's high jump record at 2.03 metres for outdoor events and 2.04 metres for indoor events. She also currently holds the women's all-time highest jump-differential, meaning she has jumped the highest more than her own height.
Italy competed at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics, held from August 15 to August 23. On August 3, the Italian national athletics federation (FIDAL) revealed the final team composed of 40 athletes, but on 8 August, after a last test competition in Grosseto, Andrew Howe, in accordance with FIDAL, decided not to compete in Berlin. Just before publishing the team, Faloci, a discus thrower, also decided not to compete.
Italy was represented by 73 athletes at the 2010 European Athletics Championships held in Barcelona, Spain. It is the third most important team selection, after those of Munich 2002 and Göteborg 2006. The standard-bearer will be Antonietta Di Martino.
Italy competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, from 27 July to 12 August 2012. This nation has competed at every Summer Olympic Games in the modern era, except for the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis. The Italian National Olympic Committee sent the nation's smallest delegation to the Games since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. A total of 285 athletes, 162 men and 123 women, competed in 22 sports.
Italy competed at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics from August 27 to September 4 in Daegu, South Korea.
Athletics in Italy is the 7th most popular participation sport, practiced by 995,000 people.
Italy has participated in all editions of the World Athletics Championships, held since the first edition of 1983 World Athletics Championships, winning 47 podiums, including 12 world titles, 15 silver medals and 19 bronze medals.
Italy competed at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics from 10 to 18 August in Moscow, Russia. On 23 July 2013 the President of the FIDAL Alfio Giomi announced during the event which took place in Agosto Azzurro in the main hall of CONI that 59 Italian athletes would participate in the world championships in Moscow.
The 2016 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships was the 27th edition of the global team racewalking competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations. It was held in Rome, Italy from 7 to 8 May 2016. It was the first edition of the tournament under its new name, having previously been known as the IAAF World Race Walking Cup since 1989.
Italy competed at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics in London, United Kingdom, from 4–13 August 2017.
Italy competed at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo, Japan from 23 August to 1 September 1991.
Italy competed at the 1993 World Championships in Athletics in Stuttgart, Germany from 13 to 22 August 1993.
Italy competed at the 1995 World Championships in Athletics in Gothenburg, Sweden from 5 to 13 August 1995.
Italy competed at the 1997 World Championships in Athletics in Athens, Greece from 1 to 10 August 1997.
Italy competed at the 1999 World Championships in Athletics in Sevilla, Spain from 20 to 29 August 1999.
Italy competed at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics in Paris, France from 23 to 31 August 2003.
Italy has participated in all the World Athletics Indoor Championships since the beginning in 1985 IAAF World Indoor Games. Italy won a total of 24 medals. Italy is 21st on the all time medal table.
