1953-07-12 Coppa Dolomiti Lancia D23 Taruffi

The Dolomites Gold Cup Race (translation: ''Coppa d' Oro delle Dolomiti'') was a car race on public roads open to traffic, which was run in the Dolomite Mountains of northern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

for ten years from 1947 to 1956. It took place along an anti-clockwise circuit that was 304 km (188 miles) long and usually took about 3 to 4 hours to complete the one lap that made up the race distance, with the start and finish in the town of

Cortina d'Ampezzo Cortina d'Ampezzo (; , ; historical ) sometimes abbreviated to simply Cortina, is a town and ''comune'' in the heart of the southern (Dolomites, Dolomitic) Alps in the province of Belluno, in the Veneto region of Northern Italy. Situated on the ...

. The circuit went through many Italian towns, and it had nearly 2,000 meters (2 km, 1.25 miles, or 6,600 feet) of elevation change- more than 6 1/2 times that of the

Nürburgring The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...

and the Isle of Man TT track. The official name of the race has changed over the years. In 1947, it was known as the "Cup of the Dolomites", from 1948 to 1950 it was known as the "International Cup of the Dolomites", and in 1951 it was renamed the "Gold Cup of the Dolomites". The race was not continued after 1956 after the fatal accident of Spaniard

Alfonso de Portago Alfonso Antonio Vicente Eduardo Ángel Blas Francisco de Borja Cabeza de Vaca y Leighton, 11th Marquess of Portago, Grandee, GE (11 October 1928 – 12 May 1957), best known as Alfonso de Portago, was a Spanish aristocrat, racing and bobsleigh d ...

at the 1957 Mille Miglia, which killed 9 spectators, which prompted the Italian government to temporarily ban racing on public roads. The race was established by the Automobile Club of

Belluno Belluno (; ; ) is a town and province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Located about north of Venice, Belluno is the Capital (political), capital of the province of Belluno and the most important city in the Eastern Dolomites region. W ...

, which is still the runner of the now

historic motorsport Historic motorsport or vintage motorsport, is motorsport with vehicles limited to a particular era. Only safety precautions are modernized in these hobbyist races. A historical event can be of various types of motorsport disciplines, from road ...

event, since 1972. The race is included in the FIA international calendar as "Big Event CSAI" classic regularity.

The race

The race's official title has changed over the years. On its foundation in 1947 it was the Coppa delle Dolomiti (Dolomites Cup); then from 1948 to 1950 it became the Coppa Internazionale delle Dolomiti (International Dolomites Cup). From 1951 on, the title became the definitive Coppa d'Oro delle Dolomiti (Dolomites Gold Cup). In the course of the race's history, the Gold Cup was awarded to the driver achieving the best result over three successive years. From the three races in 1950-1952 it was awarded to Salvatore Amendola, and in the following three-year period from 1953-1955 to

Giulio Cabianca Giulio Cabianca (19 February 1923 – 15 June 1961) was a Formula One driver from Italy. Cabianca was born in Verona, northern Italy. He participated in 4 World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 18 May 1958. He scored a total of 3 champions ...

.Gianni Cancellieri; Cesare De Agostini, ''Polvere e gloria. La Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti (1947-1956)'', Giorgio Nada Editore, 2000. . The race was started and run like a rally, where drivers started individually at timed intervals racing against the clock, like the

Mille Miglia The Mille Miglia (, ''Thousand Miles'') was an open-road, motorsport Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race established in 1927 by the young Counts :it:Franco Mazzotti, Francesco Mazzotti and Aymo Maggi. It took place in Italy 24 times f ...

and the

Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo, Sicily, Palermo. Founded in 1906 Targa Florio, 1906, it was the oldest sports car ra ...

The trophy and its allocation

The trophy for the winner is an artistic reproduction of the kilometer milestone of SS 48 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, embedded in a block of Dolomite rocks, this makes up of peaks of these mountains. In the historical period of the race, the Gold Cup was definitively assigned to the driver who obtained the best result by adding the times achieved in three consecutive years. In 1950-1952 Salvatore Ammendola won the Cup, in the following three years, 1953-1955, Giulio Cabianca won the prize.

Circuit route(meters/ft)

(1210 m/3970 ft) - * Pocol (1530 m/5020 ft) – * Passo Falzarego (2105 m/6906 ft) – * Andraz (1392 m/4567 ft) – * Pieve di Livinallongo (1465 m/4806 ft) – * Arabba (1591 m/5219 ft) – * Pordoi Pass (2239 m/7346 ft) – *

Sella Pass The Sella Pass (; or ''Jouf de Sela''; ) (2218 m) is a high mountain pass between the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol in Italy. It connects the Val Gherdëina in South Tyrol and Canazei Canazei ( Ladin: ''Cianacéi'') is a ''comun ...

junction (1819 m/5968 ft) – *

Canazei Canazei ( Ladin: ''Cianacéi'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located in the upper part of the Val di Fassa, about northeast of Trento. Its name derives from the Latin wo ...

(1467 m/4813 ft) – *

Vigo di Fassa Vigo di Fassa (, or ''Vig im Fasstal'') is a ''frazione'' of Sèn Jan di Fassa in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about northeast of Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin language, Ladin and ; ; ; ; ; ...

(1342 m/4403 ft) – *

Moena Moena ( Ladin: ''Moéna'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) and a village in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about northeast of Trento. It is the largest comune in the Fassa Valley. In the census of 20 ...

(1184 m/3885 ft) – *

Predazzo Predazzo (, literally big meadow) is a village and ''comune'' in the province of Trento, northern Italy. Predazzo is located about 58 kilometres northeast of Trento in Val di Fiemme. It is one of the main centers of Val di Fiemme (the other is C ...

(1114 m/3655 ft) – *

Rolle Pass The Rolle Pass () (1989 m) is a mountain pass in Trentino in Italy which can be reached by motor vehicles. It connects the Fiemme and Primiero valleys, and the communities of Predazzo, San Martino di Castrozza and Fiera di Primiero. The ...

(1970 m/6463 ft) – *

San Martino di Castrozza San Martino di Castrozza is a mountain resort in the Primiero valley in the Trentino province in Italy. The western part, with 428 inhabitants, is in the comune of Siror, with the eastern, housing 135 inhabitants, in Tonadico. History The firs ...

(1467 m/4813 ft) – *

Fiera di Primiero Fiera di Primiero (''La Fiera'' in local dialect) was a ''Communes of Trentino, comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italy, Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about east of Trento. It was merged with Siror, Tonad ...

(713 m/2339 ft) – *

Fonzaso Fonzaso is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Belluno in the Italy, Italian region Veneto, located about northwest of Venice and about southwest of Belluno. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 3,412 and an area of .All dem ...

(329 m/1079 ft) – *

Feltre Feltre (; ) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about from its junction with the Piave, and southwest from Bell ...

(325 m/1066 ft) – *

(389 m/1276 ft) – *

Longarone Longarone is a town and ''comune'' on the banks of the Piave in the province of Belluno, in northeast Italy. It is situated from Belluno. 4,642 people work all together in Longarone, which is 112.62% of the total population, with most actual in ...

(472 m/1549 ft) – *

Pieve di Cadore Pieve di Cadore is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Belluno in the Italian region of Veneto, about north of Venice and about northeast of Belluno. "Pieve" means "Parish church". It is the birthplace of the Italian painter Titian. ...

(878 m/2884 ft) – * Auronzo (864 m/2835 ft) – * Misurina (1756 m/4761 ft) – * Carbonin (1437 m/4715 ft) – * Passo Cimabanche (1529 m/5016 ft) – * Cortina d’Ampezzo (1210 m/3970 ft)

Top 3 results for each race

1948-07-11 Coppa Dolomiti WINNER Maserati A6GCS Bracco

1952-07-13 Coppa Dolomiti WINNER Ferrari 225 0172ET Marzotto Marini

1953-07-12 Coppa Dolomiti WINNER Ferrari 250 0282MM Marzotto Marini

1954-07-11 Coppa Dolomiti WINNER Maserati A6GCS Mantovani

''1947 - 20 July / The Cup of the Dolomites'' # Salvatore Ammendola - Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS - 3h58m18s 76.492 km/h (47.529 mph) # Piero Dusio - Cisitalia 202 MM - 4h01m45s " # Alberto Gidoni - Fiat 1100 S Gidoni - 4h03m06s " ''1948 - 11 July / II International Cup of the Dolomites'' # Giovanni Bracco - Maserati A6GCS - 3h40m47s - 82.560 km/h (51.300 mph) #

Luigi Villoresi Luigi "Gigi" Villoresi (16 May 1909 – 24 August 1997) was an Italian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Villoresi contested 34 Formula One Grands Prix across seven seasons for Italian teams Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia, and C ...

- Maserati A6GCS - 3h44m32s # Soave Besana - Ferrari 166 SC - 3h45m57s ''1949 - 17 July / III International Cup of the Dolomites'' # Roberto Vallone - Ferrari 166 SC- 3h45m02s - 81.001 km/h (50.332 mph) # Franco Cornacchia - Ferrari 166 MM - 3h48m19s # Franco Rol - Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Competizione - 3h48m20s ''1950 - 16 July / IV International Cup of the Dolomites'' # Giannino Marzotto - Ferrari 166 MM - 3h34m31s - 84.972 km/h (52.799 mph) # Giovanni Bracco - Maserati A6GCS - 3h34m45s # Franco Cornacchia - Ferrari 195 S - 3h41m39s ''1951 - 15 July / V Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' # Enrico Anselmi - Lancia Aurelia B20 - 3h45m07s -80.971 km/h (50.313 mph) # Umberto Castiglioni - Lancia Aurelia B20 - 3h47m30s #

- Osca MT4 1100 - 3h47m37s ''1952 - 13 July / VI Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' # Paolo Marzotto - Ferrari 225 S - 3h22m25s - 84.528 km/h (52.523 mph) # Giannino Marzotto -

Ferrari 340 America Ferrari America is a series of flagship Grand tourer, grand touring Ferrari models primarily built for the North American market in the 1950s and 1960s. The America models were equipped with large V12 engines and often had custom bodywork done by ...

- 3h25m57s # Giulio Cabianca - Osca MT4 1100 - 3h33'49 ''1953 - 12 July / VII Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' # Paolo Marzotto - Ferrari 250 MM - 3h18m19s - 91.913 km/h (57.112 mph) #

Piero Taruffi Piero Taruffi ("Pierino Antonio Alberto Taruffi") (12 October 1906 – 12 January 1988) was an Italian racing driver, motorcycle road racer, motorsport executive and engineer, who competed in Formula One from to . Taruffi won the 1952 Swiss Gr ...

- Lancia D23 - 3h19m52s # Umberto Maglioli -

Ferrari 735 S The Ferrari Monza is one of a series of cars built by Ferrari. In the early 1950s, Ferrari shifted from using the compact Gioacchino Colombo-designed V12 engine in its smallest class of sports racers to a line of four-cylinder engines designed ...

- 3h20m02s ''1954 - 11 July / VIII Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' # Sergio Mantovani - Maserati A6GCS - 3h19m36s - 91.319 km (56.743 mph) # Giulio Cabianca - Osca MT4 1500 - 3h20m23s # Gerino Gerini - Ferrari 250 Monza - 3h20m30s ''1955 - 10 July / IX Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' #

Olivier Gendebien Olivier Jean Marie Fernand Gendebien (; 12 January 1924 – 2 October 1998) was a Belgian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers in the history of sportscar racing, Gendebien was a Li ...

Mercedes-Benz 300 SL The Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (chassis code W 198) is a two-seat sports car that was produced by Mercedes-Benz from 1954 to 1957 as a gullwinged coupé and from 1957 to 1963 as a roadster. The 300 SL traces its origins to the company's 1952 racin ...

- 3h23m01s - 89.779 km/h (55.786 mph) # Eugenio Castellotti - Ferrari 500 Mondial - 3h23m22s # Giulio Cabianca - Osca MT4 1500 - 3h27m02s ''1956 - 8 July / X Gold Cup of the Dolomites'' # Giulio Cabianca - Osca MT4 1500 - 3h01m31s - 100.417 km/h (62.396 mph) (lap record) # Olivier Gendebien -

Ferrari 860 Monza The Ferrari Monza is one of a series of cars built by Ferrari. In the early 1950s, Ferrari shifted from using the compact Gioacchino Colombo-designed V12 engine in its smallest class of sports racers to a line of four-cylinder engines designed ...

- 3h05m18s # Umberto Maglioli - Osca MT4 1500 - 3h09m47s

References

Bibliography

# Gianni Cancellieri; Cesare De Agostini,'' Powder and glory. The Gold Cup of the Dolomites (1947–1956)'', Giorgio Nada Editore, 2000. . # Carlo Dolcini,'' The last golden cup of the Dolomites'', Patron Editore, 2007.

External links

Official Site

ACI / CSAI (Automobile Club of Italy / Italian Motor Sport Commission)
ACI presented the Gold Cup of the Dolomites 2013]
Circuits of the World
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dolomites Gold Cup Race Auto races in Italy