A beautiful day in Oropesa del Mar in the Valencia community in Spain hosted the 2019 edition of the 20km Spanish Championship.
20km men
The favorites of the race, Diego Garcia (ESP), Alvaro Martin (ESP), Alberto Amezcua (ESP) and Miguel Angel Lopez (ESP) immediately took the lead.
It is really a solitary recital that of Miguel Angel Lopez (ESP) who is the first to pass at:
- 5km in 20:01
- 10km in 40:14 (with the second 5km in 20:14) with an advantage of almost a minute on Alberto Amezcua and even more on Diego Garcia
Lopez continues with his pace; in the third 5km Lopez slows down the pace a little and goes to 15km in 1:00:39 (20:25)
With a last 5.000m covered in 20:51 Miguel Angel Lopez has no difficulty in winning in 1:21:21 a discreet time if we think that we are at the beginning of the season and there are still six months to the World Championships in Doha.
Second place to Diego Garcia Carrera (ESP) which ends two minutes from the winner in 1:23:21
Third place to Alberto Amezcua Balboa (ESP) in 1:23:52
Only the seventh in the 2018 champion in charge, Alvaro Martin (ESP) in 1:25:45 in recovery after the surgery in January at the left knee.
Thirty-six athletes at the start of which 29 completed the race (one served a penalty of 2 in the Penalty Zone), 6 DNF and 1 DQ
20km women
Even the women's race had its undisputed dominatrix as was expected from the vigil: Maria Perez (ESP).
The not yet 23-year-old Spanish (born 29.4.1996) has remained with the group of the first since the start of the race.
The 5km pass had seen Lidia Sanchez-Puebla Fernandez in the lead in 23:36
Immediately afterwards Maria Perez increased her pace to 10km in 46:40 (with the second 5km in 23:04).
It seemed that the Catalan Raquel Gonzalez Campos (ESP) could resist her, but evidently the fatigue accumulated in the 50km Spanish Championship was felt.
The pace then slows down and at 15km Maria Perez passes in 1:13.06 (with the third 5km in 26:22)
With the last 5km in 27:49 Maria Perez quietly wins in 1:30:55
Second place to Raquel Gonzalez Campos (ESP) in 1:31:40
Third place to Laura Garcia-Caro Lorenzo (ESP) who suffers for the two red cards due (loss of contact), but ends the race in 1:32.37.
Thirty-four athletes at the start of which 21 have completed the race (no stop in the Penalty Zone), and 3 DNF.