The 27th Media Maratón "Orihuela Monumental" half marathon takes place in Orihuela on Sunday 15 November 2026. The 10th edition of the 8K Caja Rural Central race runs alongside it, and Club Tragamillas organises both. The two races share one start, at 10:00 on avenida de España, next to Glorieta Gabriel Miró.
The start has been brought forward to 10:00 from 10:30 in previous years. The aim is to avoid the highest temperatures on the final stretch.
The races were presented on 3 November by Víctor Sigüenza, Orihuela's councillor for sport (concejal de Deportes). Also taking part in the presentation were Francisco Belmonte Hernández, president of Club Tragamillas, and club vice-president José Caselles Serra. They were joined by Gemma Fernández Rodríguez, director of Caja Rural Central, and Andrés Martínez Gumbau, Veolia's regional manager for the south of Alicante province. The Orihuela artist Eva Ruiz was there too.
The official poster and the commemorative T-shirt show five Orihuela landmarks: the Catedral, Palacio Episcopal, Colegio de Santo Domingo, iglesia de Santiago and iglesia de las Santas Justa y Rufina. At the centre of the design is a portrait of the poet Miguel Hernández, which Eva Ruiz donated free of charge for this edition.
The half marathon is 21,095 m. The course runs mostly through built-up parts of the city over three laps, with a stretch through the Palmeral (palm grove). Runners pass the five landmarks from the poster and other sites in the historic centre. The race has national status and is on the calendar of Spain's athletics federation (Real Federación Española de Atletismo), so licensed athletes from different regions of Spain are expected.
The half marathon has eleven age categories, from under-20 to over-70, plus overall and team classifications. Prize money for individual and team places totals €2,500. The 8K is marking its tenth anniversary, and for the first time everyone who finishes it will receive a commemorative finisher's medal, as in the half marathon. The 8K has its own categories and awards but no cash prizes. Every runner gets the same commemorative T-shirt, whichever distance they enter.
Registration for both races is open until Thursday 12 November at 23:00 on the Club Tragamillas website. After that you cannot sign up, including in person or on race day. Race numbers can be collected at La Lonja on Saturday 14 November, from 10:00 to 13:30 and from 16:30 to 20:00. They are also available on Sunday 15 November from 08:00 to 09:45, before the races begin.
More than 40 Local Police officers and more than 150 volunteers will be on duty. They are joined by Protección Civil (civil protection), Vega Baja radio amateurs handling communications, and the Red Cross (Cruz Roja) medical service. Organisers will provide showers at the Palacio del Agua and several parking areas, including the upper and lower car parks at the Ociopía shopping centre.
The town hall's announcement does not give the registration fee, details of road closures or the finishing time limit.