«Antiguamente teníamos problemas en la llegada, pero ahora hemos llegado al límite que nos permite la explanada de San Mamés,» admitted race director Iñigo Elarre regarding the venue capacity for the event.
The Bilbao Night Running Fest returns this Saturday for its 18th edition, drawing a record-breaking field of 27,000 athletes to the Basque capital, El Correo reported. The night race, sponsored by EL CORREO, has doubled its participation figures over a three-year span and sits just two editions away from its 20th anniversary.
San Mamés Start Time and Race Formats
Action gets underway at 19:00 local time Saturday from the San Mamés stadium, establishing the event as the sixth-largest federally sanctioned race by competitor volume in Spain. Organizers streamlined the event by phasing out the full marathon distance in favor of two shorter, higher-demand formats: the 21-kilometer half marathon and the 10-kilometer race. The shift proved decisive for growth, pushing field sizes up by nearly 7,000 runners compared to the 20,550 participants who raced last year.
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Out of the total 27,038 registered athletes, the half marathon accounts for 15,306 competitors, while the 10-kilometer event—locally dubbed the Carrera Pirata—hosts 11,732 runners. The surge in demand forced race organizers to cap registration without even opening a waiting list. Elarre confirmed that planning is already underway for 2027 with the target of expanding capacity to 30,000 participants.
Elite Fields and Course Records in Vizcaya
The half marathon maintains its status on the global circuit for the fourth season, drawing top international elite runners. African distance runners headline the 21k elite entry list, led by Brian Kipchumba with a personal best of 1:00:37 and Diniya Kedir Abaraya holding a 1:06:28 mark. Both athletes enter Saturday’s race as favorites to break existing course records along a route that passes the river, Deusto, and Gran Vía before concluding in front of the Guggenheim Museum.
The 10k race focuses on national competition, bringing back last year’s division winners Fernando Carro and Elena Loyo. They are joined on the starting lists by elite Spanish runners including Dani Arce, Jorge González, Fatima Azzahraa, and Alicia Berzosa.
Demographics, International Reach, and Traffic Impacts
Demographic data shows significant breadth in the runner turnout. Female participation reached 41.4% of the overall field, with women claiming a 53.9% majority specifically within the 10k category. Local engagement remains high with over 11,300 participants hailing from the Vizcaya province, while international athletes total 3,846 competitors—representing 14% of the field—across 76 foreign countries, featuring a traveler from New Zealand as the furthest participant.
Younger athletes drive a large portion of the event’s footprint, with 52% of registered runners under the age of 35. This demographic concentration fuels heavy social media engagement across digital platforms.
The massive athletic gathering brings widespread traffic disruptions to central Bilbao. Road closures affect mobility across Uribarri, Castaños, Zorrozaurre, Deusto, Ibarrekolanda, and San Ignacio between 18:00 and 23:30 local time. Public transit networks including Bizkaibus, Bilbobus, and the municipal tram line face schedule alterations, prompting officials to advise spectators and participants to utilize the metro system.
Weather forecasts indicate a cool evening for the race, with daytime highs reaching no higher than 15 degrees Celsius and overnight lows dipping to 12 degrees. Precipitation is not expected to disrupt the event, though runners may encounter damp asphalt from isolated afternoon showers.
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