Records galore at the national ultra-marathon in Malaga

Sacrifice is a non-negotiable factor when you decide to push your body to the limit to face a 50 to 100 kilometre race. The brave ones who decide to do so are simply made of different stuff. Around 200 of the country's best ultra runners came together on Saturday in an event that will go down in the history of Spanish athletics. All of the runners gathered in the Ciudad de Málaga stadium to start the track ultra-marathon an hour before sunrise, in the dark, without the light of day to guide their steps.

As the hours passed, the stifling heat of the capital of the Costa del Sol came into play, and with the accumulation of kilometres came the inevitable dizziness, cramps, vomiting and withdrawals. Not even the best in the world could avoid these challenges. For example, the withdrawal of the runner-up and Malaga-born Antonio Jesús Aguilar 'Conejo', who fainted and was forced to drop out of the race with just five laps to go. After several breaks for vomiting and attempts to rejoin his teammates; his body gave up.

The most positive note and one of the most emotional moments of the day was the new Spanish 100K champion, who earned the national title: Carlos Gazapo from Extremadura. With a dizzying pace, completing 100 km in 6:21:06, Gazapo set a new Spanish record. The previous record of 6:23:44 belonged to José María González and was unrivalled since being set 2006. His emotion when he reached the finish line and hugged his family was contagious, although he had no liquid left in his body to express his joy with tears, he was crying inside. He vindicated himself in Malaga after losing the crown at the last nationals and withdrawing from the last 100K World Championships when he collapsed at the 85th kilometre.

Completing the podium, also euphoric with great times, were the Valencian Félix Pont (6:33:52), a member of the Spanish senior team, and 20 minutes later but also under 7 hours, the Zamora-born Óscar Buján (6:53:16). The first Malaga athlete to cross the finish line was one of the province's favourites to fight for the top positions, and he more than delivered. It was Daniel Moreno, Trops Cueva de Nerja athlete, who arrived to the applause of his family members. He finished the race in 7:28:33, making him fifth overall.

In the women's category, which had much lower participation than the men's, the champion made her debut. With a smile from ear to ear lap after lap, Lucía Gonzálvez from Alicante dazzled the Malaga crowd on her arrival at the finish line, incredulous at her achievement and waving the Spanish flag. She clocked a time of 7:56:54 and was the only woman under 8 hours. The podium was completed by Mercedes Pila (8:30:03) and Ágata Halas (9:00:01). The first woman from Malaga was Janine Lima, from Atletismo Malaga, who came 4th with 9:12:21.

Excitement was high in the 50 kilometre race, boosted by the flat Malaga circuit, this distance was also full of records. In the men's category, the first two finishers managed to lower the record of the championships, which was 2:50:43 set by Jesús Ángel Olmos in 2023. The new Spanish champion, who now holds the competition record, was Francisco Serrano (Atletismo Albacete), with 2:49:16. He was followed by Alberto Puyuelo (Atletismo Oroel), with 2:50.34 and Juan Gimeno (Cárnicas Serrano), with 2:52:37.

The women's 50K was also celebratory, as the new Spanish champion took the record of the championships. This was Dolores Marcos (Kon Sports), with 3:22:21, beating the former record of 3:33:34, set by Mercedes Pila in 2021. The silver medal went to Beatriz Martínez (Intec-Zoiti), with 3:22:32 and the bronze medal went to Esther Rodríguez (Adas Cupa), with 3:23:54. In the women's 50K, the three fastest runners all beat the competition record.