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Medical certificate to run in Italy

In a nutshell

Competitive events

Does the event have the FIDAL patronage?

Recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in 1913, the Italian Athletics Federation (Federazione Italiana di Atletica Leggera, or FIDAL) is the governing body for athletics in Italy since 1906. Major competitive events in Italy, such as marathons and half marathons, are organized under its patronage - that is, are considered official athletic events and must follow the Federation's rules. If you belong to your Nation's Athletic federation (recognized by the IAAF) and are authorized by your Federation, in many events you only need to show your Athletic Federation's membership card. If you do not belong to your Nation's Athletic Federation, or you have a membership card for a discipline not part of the IAAF (such as triathlon), the Italian Athletics Federation offers foreign runners with non-Italian citizenship "RunCard", a card that allows them to participate in FIDAL-sanctioned competitive running events. After registering for a RunCard (www.runcard.com) for an enrollment fee of 15 Euros, you will receive an email including the card valid for one year: just print it out and present it, along with the medical certificate issued by your doctor. The foreign medical certificate must include the following exams: electrocardiography (ECG) at rest and after effort, and spirometry.

Is the event not organized under the FIDAL patronage?

For competitive events not organized under the FIDAL patronage, usually a simple medical certificate from your doctor should suffice, best if accompanied by electrocardiography (ECG) at rest and after effort, and spirometry test results.

Already in Italy and need a medical certificate?

If you do not have a medical certificate from your own doctor, you can obtain one while in Italy. The first requisite is that the Italian doctor that visits you has to be listed in the Elenco Regionale (Official Regional Doctors List) - any Italian region, it does not have to be the region where the event takes place. However, the Italian doctor cannot be a generic one - it has to be specialized in "Medicina dello Sport" (Sports medicine). A valid Italian certificate must be titled "Certificato di Idoneità all'Attività Sportiva Agonistica" (Fitness Certificate for Competitive Sport Activity) and not using the generic title "Certificato Medico Sportivo" (Sport Medical Certificate). The certificate must also indicate the sport only as "Atletica leggera" (Track and Field) as certificates with dual sports (for example, "Track and field / triathlon" or "Track and field / marathon") or sports different than only "Track and field" (for example, "Jogging", "Running", "Marathon", etc.) are not valid. Finally, the certificate must be signed by the Italian doctor and stamped with the Italian doctor's "Numero Regionale" (Regional Number). The Regional Number format consists in the Province abbreviation, followed by the Medical Institution acronym, and by the actual number (for example, RM AMS 010). The medical certificate must include the following exams (these are mandatory in Italy): electrocardiography (ECG) at rest and after effort, and spirometry.

Non competitive events

To participate to non competitive ("fun runs") events in Italy, usually a few lines from your doctor should suffice. Here is a paragraph you could use, along with its translation, to present to the event organizers after having it signed by your doctor:

I have examined [your name] on [day month year] and determined that [he/she] is fit, and does not present contraindication to the practice of track and field, running, marathon running, triathlon, or any endurance events.

Ho esaminato [your name] il [day month year] ed ho stabilito che è in forma fisica perfetta, e non presenta alcuna controindicazione alla pratica di atletica, corsa, maratona, triathlon o qualunque altro evento sportivo di resistenza.

Months in Italian: 1. Gennaio, 2. Febbraio, 3. Marzo, 4. Aprile, 5. Maggio, 6. Giugno, 7. Luglio, 8. Agosto, 9. Settembre, 10. Ottobre, 11. Novembre, 12. Dicembre.