Franco Arese

Francesco “Franco “ Arese was a distance runner who ran the 1,500 metres at the 1968 and 1972 Olympics. Arese won 11 Italian outdoor titles, winning the 800 in 1968-69, and 1972-73; the 1,500 in 1966-68 and 1970, the 5,000 metres in 1971, and the short-course cross-country in 1970. His biggest title came in winning the 1,500 metres at the 1971 European Championships in Helsinki. He also won that event at the 1970 Universiade in Torino. He was expected to contend for a medal in the 1,500 at the 1972 München Olympics, but did not qualify out of his semi-final. During his career Arese set Italian records at every distance from 800 to 10,000 metres.

Arese served as President of the Italian Athletics Federation from 2005-12. In October 2017, sports journalists Gianni Romeo and Fabio Monti wrote Arese’s biography, entitled Divieto di sosta (Don’t Stop).

Personal Best: 1500 – 3:36.3 (1971).