It’s one of those races when it’s crucial to conserve energy in order to share an experience. Numerous runners were finishing their final stretches at the entrance to Elche City Hall just before eight in the morning. In addition to being wet, what was about to happen was one of those unusual events that people remember.

Yesterday, almost 1,400 athletes competed in the first Ultrahélike, a 100-kilometer race organised by the Local Police, starting at the Plaça de Baix. Sénen Ródenas, the local police superintendent and organiser, emphasised that the Police Headquarters’ goal was to encourage athletics while showcasing the Elche landscapes, including the hydraulic heritage that runs along the route and has been carefully restored by the Acequia Mayor del Pantano.

The intriguing thing about this race, which differs from the well-known Transilicitana, is that individuals who are new to ultra-distance running and lack the courage to embark on such a challenging course that may take them about twenty-four hours have been given the opportunity to compete. Thus, the shortened 50-kilometer course, which must be finished in 12 hours, began at 10 am with roughly 600 runners and walkers. Mari Navarrete was one of them; she had never raced more than 30 km, so she viewed this marathon as a formidable challenge. “My spouse participates in the 100-kilometer race, and he occasionally takes me to different locations along the course. Because there are more climbs and more people congregate there, I find this area of the swamp to be the most challenging.

“The accumulation of fatigue is important”

The most stressful part, according to friends Eva López and Carmen Mendiola, is passing the Charly grill next to the ravine “because there are many loose stones and the accumulation of tiredness is important, you have to pace yourself a lot and keep your head organised, and there are those who run at night, that’s complicated.” “We usually go out every weekend, it’s a way to spend Saturday, we have a very large group to prepare and there are those who are more into walking and those who dedicate more time to killing time,” said the friends.

Rankings

The first runner in this category crossed the finish line on Paseo de la Estación at about noon. Carlos Gallego set the record with a time of 3 hours, 58 minutes, and 41 seconds. Sergio Turull won the silver medal six minutes later, while Francisco Martínez finished the race in little over 4 hours and 9 minutes. Mar Mengot crossed the finish line first in the women’s division in 5 hours, 15 minutes, and 38 seconds. María Gálvez came in second 17 minutes later, while Esther Escanciano came in third.

100,000

Oscar Irles won the 100-kilometer “queen event” after finishing in 8 hours, 17 minutes, and 47 seconds. He did this despite the rain starting at lunchtime, which made the course challenging for most competitors. He finished the race with a significant lead over Mario Martínez, the second runner, who arrived 26 minutes later. Three minutes later, Francisco Javier Jiménez won bronze.

With a time of 9 hours, 32 minutes, and 1 second, Alba Reguillo won the gold in the women’s division, followed by Lucía Gonzálvez four minutes later. Third-place finisher Mayer Adsuar was not far behind, arriving four minutes later as well.

The route

One change from previous years under the name Transilicitana is that the esplanade of the reservoir where the Rocío fair is typically held has been made possible as a stop for the participants’ greater comfort. The route passes through the Pantano, the Cau, the Grifo ravine, the beaches of the Elche coast, the Castro mountain, or some of the Elche districts.

At kilometre 32, participants in both modalities will have the opportunity to refresh their energy with paella, which is a novel idea.

A British national chose to make the three-hour flight from Alicante to Manchester into a hellish experience. Witnesses to the incident reported that several of the passengers’ antics, including biting and spitting while foaming at the mouth, caused them to lose patience and restrain him in mid-flight.

On November 8, 2023, Christopher B., 44, was travelling back to Manchester Airport from Alicante on an EasyJet flight when Manchester police came and discovered him face down on the ground, pinned down by other passengers. The passengers reported to the authorities that the disturbance had lasted for “about 30 minutes” and that the troublemaker had been “biting and spitting.”

It would seem that he had previously caused trouble on a flight. He had already entered guilty pleas to aggravated racial harassment and entering an aircraft while intoxicated. According to British media, the Briton has now been sentenced to 24 weeks in prison, about a year and a half after the tumultuous flight.

His attorney informed the court throughout the trial that he was “deeply ashamed” and wished to express regret for using such harsh language. According to the defence, his client was on vacation when he learnt that his mother had sepsis and was in critical condition at the hospital.

The defendant was “slurring his words” and “foaming at the mouth,” and the prosecutor claimed that passengers and crew could smell his “toxic substances” clearly. He also claimed that the children were shielded by the frightened family as the police attempted to restrain him, but he fought arrest by putting his arms beneath his body.

Christopher B. remained hostile while driving to the neighbourhood police station, yelling and threatening to “fuck” the cops while using derogatory language that was racial. To save him from hitting his head, another cop stepped into the back of the van and attempted to push him away. In response, the defendant said, “F*** you, motherf***er.” After that, he persisted in using racist language until they arrived at the police station.

The court who sentenced you said: “It is a deeply distressing and terribly frightening experience to be on a plane when someone like you behaves in a totally aggressive and difficult manner.”

Two men, ages 26 and 28, were caught by National Police in Elche (Alicante) on suspicion of breaking into eleven homes while people were inside. They were taken before the judge and told they would be going to jail.

The National Police’s specialised team for robberies started the investigation after getting several reports from people in the northern part of the city. People in these cases said that their homes were broken into while they were sleeping.

The thieves took a lot of expensive things, like mobile phones, watches, computers, credit cards, and cash worth more than 11,000 euros.

A trend emerged when the cases were looked at: the thieves got into the homes by climbing, and they chose homes on the first and second floors. They also broke in at night to make sure the people who lived there were asleep.

During the investigation, it was found that the attackers were caught off guard by the people living in the houses twice, and they quickly ran away when they were found.

It was also found that stolen credit cards were being used fraudulently to get up to 1,000 euros from an ATM.

Police searches helped them figure out who the two suspects were, and once they found them, they arrested them. When their home was searched, electronics and clothes that were used in the thefts were found.

The were taken to court in Elche, where they were told they would be sent to jail.