Costa Blanca

The Ultrahélike conquers Elche despite the rain

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.

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Related Topics:Beaches Elche Fair Friends Local Mayor People Police Queen

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Costa Blanca

Consum announces the opening of new stores in Aldaia, Alaquàs, Sueca, Xàtiva, Massanassa and Torrevieja

Consum expands its operations in the Valencian Community and announces the opening of additional stores in six towns throughout Valencia. The Valencian cooperative’s comprehensive network of supermarkets in the region is further enhanced by these new openings.

New Consum stores are scheduled to open in Valencia in 2025

The following are the new stores that Consum will establish in the towns of Valencia:

Alaquàs

Aldaia

Massanassa

Sueca

Xàtiva

Torrevieja (Alicante)

Three of the stores that were acquired from Kuups last year have enabled the establishment of some of these new supermarkets. These have already been assigned an estimated opening date:

Massanassa (C/ Medi Ambient), which is scheduled to commence operations at the conclusion of May.
Alaquàs (Av. Blasco Ibáñez) and Aldaia (Av. Miguel Hernández) will launch under the Consum brand in the middle of the year.
Consum intends to maintain its pace of establishing 53 new supermarkets in 2025, including 18 of its own stores and 35 Charter stores, as well as to execute 31 renovations and expansions.

In 2024, Consum achieved revenues of €4,707.03 million, a 7.3% increase, and profits of €108.7 million, a 7.5% increase from the previous year. These figures substantiate the business model advocated by the Valencian cooperative, which is founded on price competitiveness, a diverse selection of leading brands without sacrificing the quality of its own brand, and a steadfast dedication to ensuring customer savings through discounts and gift vouchers. More than €62.2 million has been allocated to this initiative.

Antonio Rodríguez Lázaro, the CEO of Consum, stated that “these results are indicative of the dedication of our entire team, the confidence of our customers, and our capacity to adjust to change while maintaining our commitment to sustainability and innovation.”

It maintained its sixth position in the national classification of distribution companies by surface area throughout the year, increasing its market share by 0.1% to 4.7% of the national market. Nielsen reports that its market share by sales in its area of influence is 13.45%.

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Costa Blanca

The El Raso, Guardamar celebrates with a Tapas Route and concerts between May 15th and 17th

The programme for the third edition of the Guardamar del Segura City Council’s festivities has been unveiled in collaboration with the residents’ association of the El Raso Urbanisation, an area that is home to a significant number of international residents.

Between May 15th and 17th, the El Raso Urbanisation will commemorate its festivities with a Tapas Route and concerts. The festivities will take place on Thursday, May 15th and Friday, May 16th, and will feature an International Tapas Route featuring twelve establishments, which is two more than the previous year. María Venerdi, the Councillor for Festivals, has announced that participants will be able to experience tapas and a drink for 3.50 euros. Additionally, participants will have the opportunity to participate in a drawing for a variety of rewards and vote for their preferred tapa on the “Tapaporte.” Last year’s edition saw the sale of over 7,000 tapas, as emphasised by the local organisers.

José Luis Sáez, the mayor of Guardamar, has emphasised the significance of “neighbourhoods becoming increasingly integrated into the dynamics of the municipality,” and he has noted that this event has “consolidated itself and become a great gastronomic celebration for the municipality.”

The city council will also offer a transport service that will travel to all participating venues in order to simplify the process of travelling.

Auditorio del Campo will host a grand celebration on Saturday, May 17th, commencing at 6 p.m. The event will feature a variety of musical groups, including the Costa Blanca Singers, who will serve as the opening act.

The charitable nature of these festivities has been emphasised by the Guardamar councillor for Festivals. The El Raso festival committee has sold T-shirts for the Tapas Route at a price of 10 euros. The proceeds of these sales, in addition to those from the bar service on the 17th, will be donated entirely to charitable causes, including the ‘El Milagro de Ver’ Foundation, which is dedicated to enhancing eye health in developing countries, and to those impacted by DANA in Valencia.

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Costa Blanca

Elche joins the national protests for Palestine on May 10th

Tomorrow, Saturday May 10th, the Elche Palestine Solidarity Committee has scheduled a demonstration in accordance with the national mobilisations under the slogan “Move for Palestine.” The march will commence at 7:00 p.m., and the rally will be held at the Chimeneas de L’Algeps in Elche at 6:30 p.m.

The initiative aims to denounce the situation in Gaza and Palestine as a whole, and to encourage citizens to demonstrate their solidarity and demand genuine action to halt the violence. The Elche Palestine Solidarity Committee extends an invitation to all individuals, irrespective of their gender or age, to participate in this collective demonstration.

As part of a coordinated campaign to increase awareness of the situation in Palestine and demand an end to the violence and occupation, this mobilisation is one of a series of demonstrations that have been organised in various cities throughout Spain.