| 1909 Milan–San Remo | |
| Date: | 4 April 1909 |
| Stages: | 1 |
| Distance: | 286.7 |
| Unit: | km |
| Time: | 9h 32' 00" |
| Speed: | 30.073 |
| First: | Luigi Ganna |
| First Nat: | Italy |
| First Natvar: | 1861 |
| First Team: | Atala-Dunlop |
| Second: | Emile Georget |
| Second Nat: | France |
| Second Team: | independent |
| Third: | Giovanni Cuniolo |
| Third Nat: | Italy |
| Third Natvar: | 1861 |
| Third Team: | Rudge Whitworth-Pirelli |
| Previous: | 1908 |
| Next: | 1910 |
The third running of the Milan–San Remo cycling classic was held on 4 April 1909. The race was won by Luigi Ganna, the first Italian to win Milan–San Remo. 104 riders started the race; 57 finished.[1]
The success of foreign riders in the two previous editions had made the race gain popularity. For the first time, more than a hundred starters signed up. 104 riders, of which 20 Belgians and French, were at the start in Milan just before six in the morning. It was a cold day and rain had made the unpaved pre-war roads very muddy.[2]
Luigi Ganna had broken away on the Passo del Turchino, before half-race, and was subsequently joined and dropped by Emile Georget and Giovanni Cuniolo.[2] In Savona, Georget took a wrong way – he said a clerk signalled him in the wrong direction – and was passed by Ganna who powered on solo to San Remo. At the finish, Ganna, a former bricklayer, was welcomed by an enthusiastic crowd and became the first Italian winner of Milan–San Remo. Georget finished second at 3 minutes, Cuniolo third at 18 minutes. For the first time, the speed average exceeded 30 km/h.[2]
| Rider | Team | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Luigi Ganna | Atala-Dunlop | 9h 32' 00" |
| 2 | – | + 3' 00" | |
| 3 | Rudge Whitworth-Pirelli | + 18' 00" | |
| 4 | Alcyon-Dunlop | s.t. | |
| 5 | Bianchi-Dunlop | + 21' 00" | |
| 6 | Alcyon-Dunlop | + 22' 00" | |
| 7 | Rudge Whitworth-Pirelli | + 26' 00" | |
| 8 | Peugeot-Wolber | + 30' 00" | |
| 9 | Alcyon-Dunlop | + 38' 30" | |
| 10 | – | + 43' 30" | |