When Sports creates Community: the 93rd Annual Statuto Race

 

Since the first edition of this Italian sporting event was organized in 1919, San Francisco’s Little Italy has hosted hundreds of runners every year desiring to take part in the annual Statuto Race.

 

After ninety-three years, the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club is still keeping up with the tradition, arranging an event that shares the values of sports, friendship, and recreation with the Italian community and beyond.

 

 In fact, today the Statuto Race is a “race and fun walk” (a five mile race and two mile walk) for all kinds of participants: sports lovers, professional runners, group members, families, and even tourists.

Yes tourists: this year there was a real surprise. Three Irish siblings visiting San Francisco, arrived less than 2 days before, with a last-minute decision to join the race.  The brother and sister team of Henry and Catherine O’Neill were the first man and the first woman to cross the finish line.

 

 

“I had read about the race online,” said Catherine, amazed to be in an Italian neighborhood. “This morning, we went to mass in North Beach.  After that we came out to ask information and decided to participate. We brought our sport clothes in the car just in case.”

 

In the morning of June 2nd, during the wait preceding the start, L’Italo-Americano spoke with Ray Piva, a living legend of the Statuto Race and San Francisco’s ultra marathon superstar.  In 2004, at the age of 77, Piva set an American age-group record by running over 109 miles at the US 24-Hour National Championships. Ray has also run the “Western States” race five times.

 

“I’ve been involved with the Statuto Race for forty years,” said Piva.  “This is the fourth oldest race in the U.S. The first one is the Boston marathon, then the Bay to Breakers (San Francisco), the Dipsea Race (Mill Valley), and we are the fourth. In the past it used to be more popular, there were all Italians in North Beach and they even made their own leather shoes, they were all working men. One year we had about four-hundred, this year we have seventy-five participants. Also, we always had some sort of charity, like scholarship for example.”

 

On the men’s overall standings, the second position was achieved by Kenley Gaffe, owner of the San Remo Hotel, which was one of the Statuto Race’s official sponsors.  Third place was won by Ty Cademartori,  who was also the first SFIAC member to cross the finish line.

 

Proceeds of the race benefited an important foundation: Standup to Cancer. “In the last six or seven years, we have been supporting Stand Up to Cancer,” said SFIAC President Alberto Cipollina.

When asked about the origin of the event, Cipollina continued: “This race was in honor of the Statuto Albertino. The Club used to be located in another building in the heart of North Beach.  We have historic pictures upstairs that I’ll show you, and there were five or six different Italian sports clubs. They eventually all merged together and the first Statuto Race was run in 1919.”

 

The chairman of the Statuto Race organizing committee is another SFIAC member, Joe Marotto:

“I’ve been the organizer for the last six years. It’s a real tradition for the Club. There are a lot of volunteers that come the day of the race, it’s truly a happening. Last year we had more runners than this year, maybe because running is not that popular comparing to yoga or riding bikes. Look at competitive running like the Bay to Breakers.  It used to have a hundred thousand registered, this year they had thirty thousand. Hopefully, running next year will come back again. Anyway, we always have participants.”

 

The Statuto Race it’s not just a race; it’s an entertainment event. “People walking on Sunday down  to the Marina Green come here, they get a t-shirt, we have a raffle with salami and wine, there is no other race that does something like that,” continued Marotto.  It’s really a fun thing, even for families; that’s the approach we have. We get a combination of people, like the Irish tourists that came this morning, went back to get their running stuff, and joined us.