Harry Johnson and Alondra Negrón were the first in their category to complete the 10K
Ben Connor and Lily Partridge triumph in Benidorm Half, which has broken several sporting and participation records
Benidorm was once again a true celebration of sport this Saturday with Benidorm Half Marathon, an edition that broke all participation records with 9,132 runners registered across both races, compared to the 6,500 who took part in the 2024 Benidorm Half. It was also a resounding success in terms of the level of competition, as the winners of the 10K and 21K races set new course records, as did the men's 21K category. The cold weather that prevailed throughout the day did not detract from an event that gains popularity and prestige every year.
In terms of the competition itself, the British runners Ben Connor and Lily Partidge won the half-marathon, while Briton Harry Johnson and Puerto Rican Alondra Negrón took the 10K titles. The winner of the long race finished with a time of 1:03:51, setting a new record. Second place went to Alejandro González de Miguel (1:04:21), and third place to Latvian Dmitrijs Serjogins (1:05:11). Lily Partridge, the first-place finisher, clocked a time of 1:12:07, finishing well ahead of Geles Gimeno (1:19:45) and María José de Toro (1:20:47).
In the 10K, Harry Johnson won with a time of 30:38, ahead of Javier Mirón (31:11) and Pablo Otero (31:18). In the women's race, Alondra Negrón won with a time of 33:13, which is also a record for her country, Puerto Rico. María Fuentes finished second (33:55) and Mónica Pascual third (34:48).
As for the local runners, Juan Antonio Fernández won the 21K race, ahead of Rubén Suárez and Adrián García. In the women's race, Gemma Ann Selby was the first to finish, followed by Ángela Llorca and Isabel Villegas. In the 10K, Pablo García Ruano was the first local runner, Ximo Santonja second, and Francisco Javier López Ródenas third. María Fuentes finished first in the women's category, ahead of Sonia Tirado and Svitlana Holosna.
This year, more than half of the participants (50.5%) were from abroad, and of those, 44.4% came from the United Kingdom. A total of 37 countries were represented across the two races. Spain, with 4,516 runners (49.5%), and the United Kingdom, with 4,043, were the most represented countries. Other notable participants included Ireland (108), Norway (74), Belgium (72), the Netherlands (72), Poland (42), Italy (38), Germany (23), France (22), and Sweden (18). Among the Spanish participants, 1,934 were from the province of Alicante (42% of the total), and the remaining 2,582 came from 46 other provinces.
It is worth noting that the race also featured athletes of the calibre of two-time Olympic medalist Fermín Cacho.
The mayor of Benidorm, Toni Pérez, accompanied by the Councillor for Sports, Javier Jordá, fired the starting pistol for the race, which for the third consecutive year began on Avenida de la Comunitat Valenciana, at its intersection with Avenida de Bélgica. The event provided impressive images as thousands of runners filled the city's urban landscape. This year, the 10K race started at 5:00 PM, followed an hour later by the 21K.
The Queens of the 2025 Patron Saint Festivities, Paula Pascual and Aitana Pérez, along with Mayor Toni Pérez and Councillor for Sports Javier Jordá, presented the trophies to the winners in the main categories.
