{{short description|Italian alpine club}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}} {{Infobox Sport governing body |assocname= '''Club Alpino Italiano''' |abbrev = (CAI) |sport= mountaineering |category =amateur athletic association |image = Cai Club Alpino Italiano Stemma.png |caption =Club Alpino Italiano |jurisdiction = |founded = {{Start date|1863}} in Turin |aff = |affdate = |region = 512 sections |regionyear = |headquarters =Milan |location = |president = |chairman = |chiefexec = |secretary = |coach = |womenscoach = |key staff = |operating income = |sponsor = |year closed = |replaced = |prevfounded = |url = https://www.cai.it/ }} The '''Club Alpino Italiano''' is the senior Italian alpine club which stages climbing competitions, operates alpine huts, marks and maintains paths, and is active in protecting the Alpine environment.
It was founded in Turin in 1863 by the then finance minister, and mountaineer, Quintino Sella; together with the Swiss Alpine Club, founded in the same year, it is the second-oldest Alpine Club in the world, only preceded by the British Alpine Club. After First World War and the annexation of Trento and Trieste to Italy, it absorbed the "Società degli Alpinisti Tridentini" and the "Società Alpina delle Giulie". As of 2020, it had 306.255 members, 512 sections and 316 sub-sections;<ref>{{cite web |title=History of the Italian Alpine Club |url=https://www.cai.it/associazione/storia/ |publisher=Club Alpino Italiano |access-date=16 August 2024 |language=it |date=2020-12-31}}</ref> the greatest numbers of members came from Lombardy (88,057), Veneto (54,948), and Piedmont (51,396).<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cai.it/index.php?id=284&L=1%2Finc%2Finclude.php%3Flanguage%3D0|title = Home-ita dicembre}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cai.it/322-022-soci-mai-cosi-tanti-nella-storia-del-cai/|title = 322.022 Soci: Mai così tanti nella storia del Cai}}</ref>
Its most famous achievement is the 1954 Italian Karakoram expedition to K2 that made the first successful ascent of K2.
The CAI operates 388 mountain huts, 251 bivouacs and 118 smaller huts and shelters throughout the Italian Alps, for an overall capacity of over 23,500 beds.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://rifugi.cai.it/ |title=Unico Rifugi Cai 2.0 |access-date=2024-08-16}}</ref>
== Publishing activity == Among many other publications the Club Alpino Italiano, along with Touring Club Italiano, published between 1908 and 2013 the ''Guida dei Monti d'Italia'' (in English ''Guidebook to the Italian mountains''), a series of guidebooks covering all the mountain ranges of Italy.
== Influence on Italian Army uniforms ==
{{main|Uniforms of the Italian Armed Forces}}
Italian military troops adopted a grey-green uniform during World War I. Luigi Brioschi, president of the Milanese section of the C.A.I. (Italian Alpine Club) in 1905 introduced a combat uniform more suitable for a modern war, replacing the showy uniforms of the Royal Sardinian Army. Brioschi demonstrated that the grey uniforms were less visible by opponent snipers, therefore, the project was financed.
==References== {{Reflist}}
== External links == *[http://www.cai.it/index.php?id=1&L=1 Official website]
{{Authority control}}
Category:Club Alpino Italiano