San Silvestre Vallecana 2024 Results: winners and times

Plan your race pace

The 2024 San Silvestre Vallecana closed the year in Madrid with the exact blend of celebration, athletic level, and popular energy that has made it a benchmark on the calendar. The 60th‑anniversary edition produced memorable elite moments — including an intense men’s duel involving Berihu Aregawi and Jacob Kiplimo — and a triumph of huge symbolic weight for Marta García Alonso in the women’s international race. In the popular race, Mohamed Massat Bouzahar won the men’s category in 29:07 and Esther Ramos opened her account in the event with 34:38. Across both races the organizers gathered more than 40,000 participants, marking another edition that combined top performance with massive participation.

An edition marked by elite quality and the energy of the streets

The night of December 31 repeated the familiar script: the start around the Santiago Bernabéu, the route through central Madrid, and the finish at Vallecas Stadium, where the Vallecana always finds its most popular meaning. The 60th edition mixed elite pace and popular atmosphere and was also framed by Rayo Vallecano’s centenary, which added an extra emotional backdrop in the stadium.

Men’s international race: duel, podium and finish‑time reports

The men’s elite race was run at a very high pace from early on. The most talked‑about sequence was the high‑voltage duel between Berihu Aregawi and Jacob Kiplimo. Accounts of the finish include two closely related but different sets of times that both appeared in coverage of the race: some reports describe a shared victory in which Aregawi and Kiplimo crossed the line together in 26:32; other sources report Berihu Aregawi stopping the clock at 26:30, a time presented as a new race record. Both pieces of information were prominent in post‑race reporting and should be understood as part of the edition’s contested and dramatic final meters.

Adel Mechaal completed the podium in 27:40, a performance celebrated by the home crowd in Vallecas and confirming that Spanish athletes remained competitive in a field loaded with international stars.

• Reported top times (multiple sources): Berihu Aregawi & Jacob Kiplimo – 26:32 (shared victory reported); Berihu Aregawi – 26:30 (reported as a new race record in other coverage).
• 3rd place: Adel Mechaal – 27:40.

Women’s international race: Marta García’s historic win

The women’s international competition produced one of the night’s most celebrated stories: Marta García Alonso won in 31:19, a victory that carried huge symbolic and sporting value. García’s win made her the first Spanish woman to win the international race since 2008, a fact highlighted in coverage of the edition. Behind her, Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich finished second in 31:32 and Águeda Marqués Muñoz was third in 31:34.

• Winner: Marta García Alonso – 31:19.
• 2nd: Ruth Chepngetich – 31:32.
• 3rd: Águeda Marqués Muñoz – 31:34.

The international race delivered record‑like readings and deep performance density

The international race offered a dense competitive field and times that read like those of elite urban 10Ks. Official figures published after the race show a broad base of fast performers within the international race: 1,638 finishers in the international competition, with 329 finishing under 35 minutes; 99 under 32, 49 under 31, and 27 under 30. Those numbers underline how the top performances were part of a wider block of very fast times rather than isolated marks.

The popular race’s double focus: times, stories and participation

The popular race once again functioned as a human current driven more by identity than by statistics, but the 2024 results also allow a precise reading of its level. Mohamed Massat Bouzahar won the men’s popular race in 29:07; Nicolás Cuestas was second in 29:16 and Adrián de la Orden third in 29:57. In the women’s popular race Esther Ramos dominated in 34:38 (her first appearance and win), with Paula García Pérez second in 35:17 and Cristina Giurcanu third in 35:44.

Coverage of the race included human details that give context to those times: Massat arrived with health problems yet managed to hold winning pace and secure the men’s popular title, an example of the personal stories behind headline numbers.

• Popular race podiums (top 3):
• Men: Mohamed Massat Bouzahar – 29:07; Nicolás Cuestas – 29:16; Adrián de la Orden – 29:57.
• Women: Esther Ramos – 34:38; Paula García Pérez – 35:17; Cristina Giurcanu – 35:44.
• Participation and distribution (published figures): 33,203 finishers in the popular race; 600 runners under 40 minutes, 2,282 under 45, and 5,666 under 50.
• Total participation: more than 40,000 runners across both races (both international and popular combined).

Route, course characteristics and why the times matter

The San Silvestre Vallecana course retains a character that rewards smart pacing. The route’s script — a fast, broad start near the Santiago Bernabéu, wide avenues through central Madrid, and the final climb toward Vallecas Stadium — is very recognizable to regular participants. The combination of a fast opening and a demanding closing section means that the results are not achieved on a flat, aseptic circuit but on a course with personality: a fast early rhythm that often leads to a selective and painful last kilometer.

That course profile gives added value to 2024 marks such as Massat Bouzahar’s 29:07 and Esther Ramos’s 34:38 in the popular race and to the elite times in the international race. In addition, the Vallecas Stadium finish — amplified in 2024 by Rayo Vallecano’s centenary celebrations — provides a unique emotional and acoustic environment that changes how athletes experience the final meters and how spectators read the result.

The social dimension: Vallecas, stands and year‑end ritual

The Vallecana has become a rite of passage between years in Madrid. The event’s success is based on its ability to host two different worlds in the same night: world‑class elites and a massive popular field. The 2024 edition — the 60th anniversary — reinforced that identity: the stadium atmosphere, the crowds along the route, and the variety of participants (costumes, groups of friends, families, and competitive athletes) turned the streets into a choral scene.

Rayo Vallecano’s centenary added a particular emotional tone inside the stadium: tributes, flares and the club’s presence strengthened the neighborhood connection and gave the finish an even more resonant context. The final image — runners entering a loud, packed Vallecas Stadium — is as much part of the Vallecana’s identity as the stopwatch readings.

What the 2024 times reveal about the state of the race

The 2024 San Silvestre Vallecana preserved its double reading: on one hand a top‑level international competition capable of producing record‑like performances; on the other hand a mass popular race that remains competitive and meaningful. The men’s elite duel (Aregawi vs Kiplimo) and the contested finish‑time reports (26:32 shared finish vs 26:30 reported race record for Aregawi) illustrate how the sporting narrative can be both spectacular and, in close finishes, open to differing accounts. Marta García’s 31:19 carries historic weight as the first Spanish woman to win the international race since 2008, a result that added national significance to the edition.

The distribution figures in both international and popular fields show a deep level of performance across the board: hundreds of fast finishes in the international field and thousands of competitive times in the popular race. Those data points confirm that the Vallecana remains a race where elite performance and mass participation coexist without contradiction.

Details and figures at a glance

Key facts and figures from the 2024 edition:

• Edition: 60th anniversary.
• Total participants across both races: more than 40,000.
• International race finishers: 1,638.
• International race distribution: 329 under 35:00; 99 under 32:00; 49 under 31:00; 27 under 30:00.
• Popular race finishers: 33,203.
• Popular race distribution: 600 under 40:00; 2,282 under 45:00; 5,666 under 50:00.
• Rayo Vallecano centenary: stadium atmosphere and tributes reinforced local identity at the finish.

Podium summary

What remains in the memory after a Vallecana like this

Berihu Aregawi and Jacob Kiplimo delivered a top‑class duel; Marta García claimed a victory with historic impact for Spanish athletics; and the popular race once again explained why the Vallecana is more than a 10‑kilometre event. The 2024 results leave a complete snapshot: athletic excellence at the top, massive participation below, and an entire city serving as a backdrop. The 60th‑anniversary edition underlined the race’s ability to keep the pulse between elite competition, fans, and the street intact.

Whether one reads the men’s finish as a shared 26:32, as a 26:30 race record for Aregawi, or as both depending on the source, the sporting and social narrative of the night remains the same: high tension, exceptional performances, and a finish in Vallecas that turns the athletic result into a collective memory. The 2024 San Silvestre Vallecana was once again simply the Vallecana — a race where the last day of the year is measured not only with clocks but also with the shared rhythm of thousands of runners crossing Madrid’s streets toward the stadium lights.