The Cursa de Bombers ( en, Fireman's Race) is an annual

road running Road running is the sport of running on a measured course over an established road. This differs from track and field on a regular track and cross country running over natural terrain. These events are usually classified as long-distance ...

race over 10 km which takes place in April in

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, Catalonia, Spain.

History and course

The race was created in 1999 as a joint venture between the ''Bombers de Barcelona'' (Firemen of Barcelona) and

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

as a way of protesting against the Ayuntamiento de Barcelona (Barcelona City Council) for their refusal to respond to the firefighters' demands for improved working conditions. The race has since grown significantly as both an elite and popular race, with major Spanish runners such as

Marta Domínguez Marta Domínguez Azpeleta (born 3 November 1975) is a Spanish former runner and politician. She competes mainly in the steeplechase. She has represented Spain four times at the Olympics and has competed at the World Championships on six occasio ...

taking part and over 13,000 athletes running the course by the 2007 edition of the event. A record of 18,014 people participated in the 2010 race – edition which held

IAAF Bronze Label Road Race World Athletics Label Road Races are races that the World Athletics (until 2019: ''IAAF'') designates as one of the "leading road races around the world." The classification was first introduced for the 2008 running season, upon the suggestion of ...

status.Valiente, Emeterio (2010-04-19)
Menjo blazes 27:04 10Km in Barcelona

IAAF World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body fo ...

. Retrieved on 2019-04-03. Post Office Passeig de Colom

The course of the race is uphill for the first and has a slow decline over the remaining . The race has a looped circuit which is clockwise in direction and goes through a number of major roads in the city. Beginning on Avenida Marques de Argentera, near the

Parc de la Ciutadella The (; "Citadel Park") is a park on the northeastern edge of Ciutat Vella, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. For decades following its creation in the mid-19th century, this park was the city's only green space. The grounds include the city zoo ( ...

, the race heads west toward Passeig de Colom before going northwards along

Avinguda del Paral·lel Avinguda del Paral·lel (; en, Avenue of the Parallel) is one of the main streets of the city of Barcelona, dividing Ciutat Vella, Eixample and Sants-Montjuïc districts. It receives this name because it is (unlike any other street in Barcelona) ...

. The route turns eastwards at Calle Floridablanca and follows a straight path along

Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes Gran may refer to: People *Grandmother, affectionately known as "gran" *Gran (name) Places * Gran, the historical German name for Esztergom, a city and the primatial metropolitan see of Hungary * Gran, Norway, a municipality in Innlandet count ...

. The race begins to loop back to the start at this point, passing through

Passeig de Sant Joan Passeig de Sant Joan () is a major avenue in the Eixample and Gràcia districts of Barcelona. It was named after an older street carrying this name, also known as Passeig Nou, built in 1795 around the glacis of the Ciutadella fortress. It starts a ...

, Ronda de Sant Pere and finally onto

Via Laietana Via Laietana () Vía Layetana in Spanish, is a major thoroughfare in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in the Ciutat Vella district. The avenue runs from Plaça Urquinaona to Plaça d'Antonio López, by the seafront, and separates the neighbourhoods ...

The elite race has been dominated by Kenya runners, with all but two editions of the men's race having a Kenyan victor and half of the past women's race winners coming from the country. In spite of this, the race remains popular among the top domestic runners, such as Chema Martínez, Nuria Fernández, and

Carles Castillejo Carles Castillejo Salvador (born August 18, 1978 in Barcelona) is a Spanish long distance runner. He has won Spanish national titles in the 5000 m, the 10,000 m and the marathon. He has represented Spain at the Olympics on four occasi ...

, who have reached one of the top three spots. The 2011 elite race was reduced to a sub-national level race as only those who were registered with the Catalan Athletics Federation were allowed to compete. With little competition, and hot weather to contend with, the winning times were among the slowest ever for the race.Justribó, Joan (2011-04-11)
La Bombers se abona al récord
Mundo Deportivo. Retrieved on 2011-04-16.

Past winners

Key:

Statistics

References

External links

Official website
{{in lang, ca 10K runs Athletics competitions in Catalonia Athletics competitions in Spain Recurring sporting events established in 1999 Athletics in Barcelona

History and course

Past winners

Statistics

See also

References

External links