VI Trail Navajas 2026: results, winners and race report

Plan your race pace

Navajas filled its Plaza el Olmo again on Sunday 4 October 2026 for the sixth edition of its trail race, part of the Desafío Alto Palancia series. There were two distances through the hills around the town: 22 km with 789 m of climbing, starting at 8:00, and 15 km with 550 m, half an hour later. 306 runners finished, 112 in the long race and 194 in the short one, the highest figure of the last three editions.

22K trail: Samuel Palomera wins alone

Samuel Palomera Svensson (Mur i Castell-Blumaq) won the long race in 1:50:13, five minutes clear of Iván Giménez Molina (Trail Morvedre), second in 1:55:19. The fight for third was much closer: David Sáez Sánchez (Redolat Team) finished just ten seconds behind Giménez. Gema Garrido (Cap i Cames Trail Running Team) won the women’s race in 2:37:42, with María Asensi Girbes less than three minutes back.

Men’s podium, 22K

Women’s podium, 22K

15K trail: decided in a sprint

The short race came down to the last metres. David Dolz Gargallo (Maestrazgo Els Ports) and Marc Pallarés Pruñonosa (El Castellet – Les Useres) finished with the same time, 1:15:13, and the timing gave the win to Dolz. It is an unusual result: the winner runs in the over-40 category and the runner-up in the under-23 one. Gabriel Palomera Svensson was third in 1:17:05, so the Palomera brothers reached the podium in both races. Norma Ramón Renau (Club Atletismo Onda) won the women’s race in 1:37:42, ahead of Carla Torralba Navarrete, the first under-23, and Estefanía García Escandell.

Men’s podium, 15K

Women’s podium, 15K

Best times by age category

The rules give trophies to the top three in each category, from under-23 to over-60, as well as overall. Prizes are not cumulative, so overall podium finishers do not repeat in their category and the trophy goes to the next runner. These are the best times in each age group according to the official timing:

22K

15K

How the race went

Half of the 22K finishers were faster than 2:43:58 and the last one came in at 3:58:04, well inside the 13:00 cut-off. In the 15K the median was 2:00:26 and the last finisher crossed the line in 2:57:41. These are mountain times: climbing 789 m in 22 km means walking the steep sections and descending carefully on loose ground, so the pace per kilometre has little to do with a road race of the same length.

Women’s participation varied a lot by distance: 58 women in the 15K, 30% of the finishers, and 15 in the 22K. More than half of the 15K runners entered without a club. Trail Morvedre was the largest team, with 11 finishers across both races, followed by Los Pistones (7) and Runners Vimar (5).

A race that keeps growing

The Navajas trail has gained runners every year: 200 finishers in 2024, 279 in 2025 and 306 in 2026, still below the 600-place limit in the rules. Times are only comparable from one year to the next if the course stays the same, so the table is mainly a record of who has won.

Mireia Briones González won the women’s 15K in 2024 and 2025. Francisco Rodríguez Tórtola, the 2025 22K winner, came back this year and finished 20th.

What to know for next year

• There are no cups at the aid stations. Bring a bottle or a collapsible cup to refill. Dropping litter outside the bins can get you disqualified.
• The GPS track on your watch is mandatory, together with a charged phone with the organisers’ number saved. The course is marked with orange tape, but some areas have no signal.
• The route crosses roads that stay open to traffic. Crossings are staffed by volunteers or civil protection, but the road is not closed and each runner must stop and look.
• 2026 prices: €17 for the 15K and €22 for the 22K without the shirt; €20 and €25 with it. Every finisher gets a medal, and the club with the most entries won a ham.
• Bib collection is on race morning, from 7:15 to 8:25, at the tourist office in Plaza el Olmo.

Navajas and the Alto Palancia

Navajas sits next to Segorbe, less than an hour from Valencia on the A-23, and is known for the Salto de la Novia waterfall and its springs. The trail is part of the Desafío Alto Palancia, a series of races through the villages of the area. If you are travelling, the race box on this page lists accommodation near the start, and the popular races calendar shows the next races in the area. In August the town also holds the Navajas Popular Race, on road through the town centre.

Photos and video

Luis Rosalén shared photos of the race and a video of the morning on Facebook. Thanks for sending them.

Official results: sportmaniacs.com. Rules and race information: atloseventos.com.