Half of the Spots Filled for the First Elche-Alicante Marathon

The first Elche-Alicante Marathon 42K, scheduled for November 30, has reached 2,500 registrants six months before the start of the race near the Palacio de Altamira in Elche. The gradual increase in registrations has led the organisers, Club Atlético Montemar, to set the maximum participation at 5,000 athletes for this inaugural edition. "This is an optimal number for the perfect development of the race and to meet our expectations," commented the sports director, José Manuel Albentosa.

Half of the registrations formalised are from athletes outside the province of Alicante. Of these, the international entries come from 25 countries, mainly from Great Britain, Italy, and France. Registrations for the event, organised by the Club Atlético Montemar, can be completed on the website maratonelchealicante.com.

In Spain, registrations have been confirmed from the province of Madrid - the majority - Albacete, Almería, Barcelona, Vizcaya, Cáceres, Castellón, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Girona, Guadalajara, Lleida, Murcia, La Rioja, Salamanca, Segovia, Seville, Toledo, Valencia, Valladolid, and Zaragoza. Internationally, besides those mentioned earlier, entries have been received from Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United States.

The organisers have also revealed the elevation profile of a race that is practically flat. The highest point, if it can be considered as such, will be in Elche (80 metres above sea level). From there, with a slight descent, the route will reach the entrance of the Ciudad de la Luz film studios (0 metres above sea level), continuing flat until the finish line located at Dock 12 of the Port of Alicante, in the Ocean Race area. The 42 kilometres are distributed as follows: eleven through the urban centre of Elche, 20 kilometres in the section between the two cities, and the last eleven through the urban area of Alicante.

One of the curiosities of the International 'Elche-Alicante' Marathon is that, along with Boston, it is the only marathon worldwide that starts and finishes in two different locations. In the case of Boston, which took place on April 25, it starts from Hopkinton.

Toni Gallego, Councillor for Sports of the Alicante City Council, highlighted that "the most optimistic expectations regarding participation are being met. If we thought that 3,000 registrants would already be a great success for a first edition, reaching 5,000 will make what seemed like a dream come true and confirms that the idea of joining forces between both councils is the best formula. It means we take a huge leap in terms of organising sporting events."

The marketing plan for promoting the event will be complemented in the coming months by tourist packages to promote the race and guided tours of Elche and Alicante. The first details of the November 2025 marathon were revealed by Barcala and Ruz at the International Tourism Fair (Fitur) in January 2024.