Trofeo Alfredo Binda-Comune di Cittiglio is a women's professional road bicycle racing event held annually in the comune (municipality) of Cittiglio and nearby comunes located within the Province of Varese in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy.
First held in 1974, Trofeo Alfredo Binda is one of the oldest and most established races in the women's calendar, and has been part of the UCI Women's World Tour since its inception in 2016.
The race is named after Italian cyclist Alfredo Binda, who was from Cittiglio. In the 1920s and 1930s, Binda won five editions of the Giro d'Italia, four editions of the Giro di Lombardia and two editions of Milan–San Remo - as well as being world champion three times.[1]
The race was first held as a regional event in 1974.[2] The race became a national event in 1999, before becoming an international event from 2007.[3][4] In 2008, the race joined the UCI Women's Road World Cup.[5] In 2016, the Trofeo Alfredo Binda became part of the new UCI Women's World Tour.[6] It is one of the biggest races on the women's calendar that does not have a male equivalent.[1][4]
A junior race (Piccolo Trofeo Alfredo Binda) has been held alongside the race since 1979, with it becoming being part of the UCI Nations Cup from 2015.[7][8]
The race is well suited for puncheurs and climbers, with two riders winning the race four times - Italian rider Maria Canins (1984, 1985, 1990, 1992), and Dutch rider Marianne Vos (2009, 2010, 2012, 2019). Italian riders have won the event on twenty seven occasions.[1]
Trofeo Alfredo Binda is held in the Province of Varese in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. The start location varies year to year, but the course culminates with multiple laps of a hilly circuit outside Cittiglio around 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) in length.[9]
The circuit has two significant climbs - the Casale Alto or Casalzuigno (0.8km at 7%) in the early part of the circuit and the climb of Orino (2.6km at 5%), which typically separates the field as it is located just before the conclusion of the circuit.[10] The circuit passes through Brenta, Casalzuigno, Casale Alto, Cuveglio, Cuvio, Azzio, Gemonio before returning to Cittiglio.
Other climbs that have featured on the route include the Masciago Primo (5.1km at 4.6%), Caldana (2.2km at 4.5%) and Cunardo (4km at 4.8%).[9][11]
Source:[12][13]
La storia del Trofeo Alfredo Binda – Comune di Cittiglio, – U.C.I. Women's Road World Tour. Cittiglio, il paese natale di Alfredo Binda, primo campione del mondo su strada. ricca di aneddoti e di grandi nomi nel proprio albo d'oro, lo rende una manifestazione unica nel panorama italiano e internazionale. La gara femminile a lui intitolata si è disputata per la prima volta nel 1974 come gara regionale, in seguito gara di livello nazionale dal 1999 e, infine, promossa a livello internazionale dal 2007, e unica prova italiana di Coppa del Mondo dal 2008 al 2015. Dal 2016 riconfermata nel calendario internazionale dell'U.C.I. Women World Tour che ha riformulato la Coppa del Mondo con l'inclusione di alcune gare a tappe.
Il "Piccolo Trofeo Alfredo Binda – Valli del Verbano – U.C.I. Nations' Cup Junior", disputato dal 2013 come gara nazionale, è diventato gara Internazionale dal 2015 e si disputa nella mattinata prima della prova di U.C.I. WWT.