Toledo once again turned this weekend into a grand celebration of popular athletics on Saturday night with the celebration of the XIX Toledo Night Run. The event brought together 6,646 runners, a record figure confirming the growing appeal of a meeting that blends sport, heritage, festive atmosphere, and solidarity.
The race, held on October 17, offered participants the opportunity to traverse some of the city’s most emblematic corners under nighttime illumination, accompanied by spectators, music, and the various cheering points spread along the route.
The longer race, 8.5 kilometers, ended with an especially thrilling finish in the men’s category. The Toledan David Rey Veiga, 18, claimed victory with a time of 28 minutes and 2 seconds, after a tight finish with Kenyan Samson Keiyo, who recorded the same time. The third place went to Pedro Javier Vega Ballesteros, at 28:31. In the women’s category, Mercedes Santos-Orejón was crowned winner with a time of 33:07. Sofía Gregorio, 34:51, and Alba María Reguillo, 37:45, completed the podium.
The 5.5-kilometer event also produced standout names. Abdelouahed El Hazmiri won the men’s category with 22:27, followed by Álvaro de Paz, with 23:53. In the women’s race, Marta Lozano prevailed with a time of 27:08, ahead of Lucía Rodríguez and Paula Luna.
A unique route through monumental Toledo
One of the main attractions of the Nocturna is its route through a city declared a World Heritage Site. Running through Toledo at night offers a different perspective of its monuments, walls, bridges, and historic alleyways. The long-distance course started on Avenida de Castilla-La Mancha, beside the bus station, and passed through areas such as Alcántara Bridge, Puerta del Sol, and Puerta de Bisagra. The route continued around the bullring area and the San Martín Bridge, before entering the heart of the historic old town.
Runners passed through places as representative as Santo Domingo el Real, the Town Hall square, the Mayor’s Square and Zocodover. The cobbled streets, narrow passages, steep ascents, and nighttime views of Toledo’s heritage made the course as demanding as it was spectacular. The 5.5-kilometer distance started from the bullring and shared much of the monumental stretch with the long race.
The Alcázar, protagonist of the new finish
The big novelty of this edition was the change of finish line location. Instead of ending in Zocodover Square, the runners arrived around the Alcázar of Toledo, in the Corralillo de San Miguel area.
The change allowed a larger space to receive participants and improve the finish-line organization. It also added a visual appeal to the experience, with one of Toledo’s most emblematic buildings serving as the race’s final backdrop. Music, drumming groups, DJs, and the crowd’s cheers helped create a festive atmosphere throughout the night.
Joma again surprises with an exclusive sneaker
The Nocturna also took center stage in the realm of sports gear. The Toledo-based brand Joma unveiled a sneaker designed specifically for the 2026 edition, together with the event’s official T-shirt. This year’s design pays homage to two fundamental elements of the local identity: damascening, one of Toledo’s most renowned artisanal traditions, and the eighth centenary of laying the first stone of the Cathedral Primada. The official sneaker is part of the special line created for the race, while the T-shirt features commemorative details linked to the cathedral’s milestone.
¿Cuánto costaba inscribirse?
The registration price started with an early rate of 9 euros without a T-shirt or 15 euros with a T-shirt, and rose in the final phase to 18 euros.
Una carrera con compromiso solidario
Beyond the sporting results, Toledo’s Nocturna maintained its charitable commitment. Part of the proceeds from the 2026 edition were allocated to the Niemann-Pick Foundation, the Spanish Association Against Cancer, and the Maratón Pura Lección de Vida initiative.
