The valley of Zegama in Spain's Basque Country woke on Sunday morning to the same heavy mountain mist and packed roadside crowds that have defined this race for a quarter of a century. The 25th edition of the Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon set off at 9 a.m. local time under cool, mostly dry conditions, with a record-equalling field of more than 500 elite and sub-elite runners tackling the 42-kilometre loop through the Aizkorri Massif and its 2,736 metres of vertical climb.
On the men's side, defending champion Elhousine Elazzaoui returned to the Basque mountains with the bib that has set the tone for the Spring trail season since his breakthrough win in 2025. The Morocco-based skyrunner faces a stacked challenge from Kilian Jornet, who is using Zegama as part of his build-up toward Western States in June, and from Switzerland's Rémi Bonnet, the reigning Golden Trail World Series champion. Italy's Daniel Pattis, Spain's Andreu Blanes and a deep cohort of Basque locals round out the podium contenders for a race in which course knowledge has historically been almost as decisive as raw climbing speed.
The women's race is arguably the deepest in the event's history. Defending champion Sara Alonso returns to defend in front of a home crowd and faces a marquee international challenge from Sweden's Tove Alexandersson, the multi-time orienteering and Skyrunning world champion making her Zegama debut. Switzerland's Judith Wyder, who has emerged as one of the most consistent technical-terrain runners on the circuit, completes a likely podium trio that on paper is capable of pressuring Nienke Brinkman's 2022 course record of 4:16:43.
Zegama opens the 2026 Golden Trail World Series, the Salomon-backed circuit that has tied many of the sport's biggest names to a six-race summer schedule. The new GTWS season adds Sierre-Zinal, Pikes Peak, Mammoth, and the Ring of Steall to a calendar that culminates in October's grand final, and Zegama points carry particular weight for athletes balancing a full GTWS commitment against UTMB World Series obligations later in the year. Organisers also confirmed that the 2026 edition has sold out for the 18th consecutive year, with more than 7,000 ballot entries for the 500 marathon places.
Weather forecasts have stayed broadly favourable through the morning, with valley temperatures in the low teens and only intermittent cloud on the higher ridgelines around Aizkorri. That combination — cool but dry, with the technical descents firm rather than greasy — is exactly the profile that has produced the fastest times in race history. Whether the conditions hold long enough to threaten the men's record of 3:36:40 set by Jornet in 2022 will likely depend on how aggressively the lead group attacks the long climb out of San Adrián. Full live coverage continues on iRunFar and the official Zegama-Aizkorri tracker, with the men's winner expected back in the village in just under four hours.