Celia Antón, the 29-year-old Spanish distance runner from Aranda de Duero, will make her debut at the Behobia-San Sebastián on Sunday, a first start in a race she says she has long wanted to run, Diario Vasco reported. For Antón, the appearance marks the latest chapter in a career that has moved from junior prodigy to injury-interrupted elite athlete to teacher and, now, back to competitive racing on her own terms.
“I felt it was the moment to reinvent myself, to live another stage,” Antón said of the decision that reshaped her life after years of setbacks.
From Junior Podiums to a Senior European Top Eight
Antón’s record as a young athlete was remarkable. She collected a silver medal at the European U18 championships, a bronze at the U23 Europeans, national records at distances from the 1,500 meters to the 5,000 meters, about ten gold medals at Spanish junior championships, a memorable victory at the Muguerza de Elgoibar as an U18 athlete, and an eighth-place finish in the 3,000 meters at the senior European indoor championships, Diario Vasco reported. She was, by her own account and by the results, one of the most promising Spanish runners of her generation.
But injuries repeatedly interrupted that trajectory. After debuting with the Spanish senior national team and reaching that eighth place at a European indoor championship, she faced a series of physical setbacks and relapses that, she said, denied her the continuity needed to compete at the elite level.
Eight Years in Madrid, Two in Valencia, Then Home
At 18, Antón left Aranda de Duero for Madrid, where she spent eight years at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento and studied biochemistry at the Universidad Complutense. She later moved to Valencia, where she spent two years training but not seeking to compete, saying she needed another life and another stage. Roughly a year and a half ago, after ten years away, she returned to Aranda de Duero, where she now lives, works and trains.
There she completed a master’s degree in teaching and now works as a teacher at a vocational training institute, instructing students in what she describes simply as the chemistry of wine. She trains in Aranda as well, without the demands she once faced.
Asked whether she became disillusioned with athletics, she did not mince words. “Yes, let’s not kid ourselves. It hasn’t been a bed of roses. I’ve had to battle a lot. And I’ve had to reinvent myself, face a new stage,” she said.
The Return to Racing and a London Half-Marathon Victory
At the end of 2025, with Antón already back in Aranda, the opportunity arose to join the Vicky Foods Athletics club, which is associated with the sportswear brand Oysho. She saw the project as a chance to return after a competitive layoff and resumed racing about a year ago, Diario Vasco reported. She now describes athletics as something more social, more about enjoying it as part of a team.
Her return has already produced a significant result. In October, she won the Oysho Royal Parks Half Marathon in London with a time of 1:14:10, a personal best. She had also run the Berlin half marathon earlier in the spring, part of a new motivation to run distances that once felt long to her.
She has not abandoned the track entirely. This summer she ran the 5,000 meters in Valladolid, achieved the qualifying standard for the Spanish championships, and finished sixth in Málaga, an experience she described as different from her earlier years, Diario Vasco reported.
Sunday’s Behobia Debut With the Oysho Team
Antón will line up at the Behobia-San Sebastián with a group of Oysho athletes, traveling to the Basque Country on Friday afternoon and taking part in a pre-race activation on Saturday. She said she does not usually drive a road course in advance and plans to rely on the detailed course information available online.
The Behobia, at just over 20 kilometers, is close to half-marathon distance and features hills, a profile that suits her current strength over longer road distances. “The first times are always special,” she said. “The Behobia-San Sebastián has a name in the popular running world. Until this year I haven’t had the chance to run it, and I’m excited to be on the start line. Whenever I’ve run in the north they’ve received me well, so I hope the story repeats on Sunday.”
She was cautious about her chances of winning. “I don’t know, honestly. It excites me. Whenever I put on a bib I give my best; let it not be for lack of trying. I think it’s a race where the crowd carries you, so I hope they do that with me. It’s always a plus. Just being at the Behobia is going to be a great experience, but if I manage to win, I think it would be perfect. It will also depend on who takes the start,” she said.
Marathon and Triathlon on the Horizon, No Rush
Looking further ahead, Antón said she would like one day to complete a marathon and a triathlon, things she feels she should do at least once in her life, but she has no hurry. For now, she is focused on enjoying running again after so much was taken from her, and she still loves the sport intensely.
On Sunday, the Behobia-San Sebastián will be her first start in the race, with the Oysho team around her and a home-region crowd she expects to welcome her, as has happened whenever she has raced in northern Spain.
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