FEDME confirmed on April 29, 2026, the final Spanish team that will compete at the Youth Skyrunning World Championships in Makarska, Croatia, from May 8 to May 10, 2026. This is much more than a routine team announcement: Spain is sending 18 athletes to an international championship featuring two highly demanding disciplines and 75 medals up for grabs.
For SnapRace readers, this story matters for two reasons. First, it offers a useful snapshot of where young Spanish trail running is heading. Second, it gives context for one of the most spectacular championships on the skyrunning calendar, with short, technical and aggressive courses on the Biokovo massif, overlooking the Adriatic Sea.
What FEDME has announced
According to the official federation announcement, Spain will travel to Croatia with an 18-athlete squad to compete in both the VERTICAL and SKY disciplines. The team is due to arrive in Makarska on Thursday, May 7, 2026, and will take part in the official team parade that same day.
The competition schedule is as follows:
- Friday, May 8, 2026: VERTICAL race, over 4.5 km with 980 metres of elevation gain.
- Sunday, May 10, 2026: SKY race over 12.5 km with 1,150 m D+ for the Youth A and Youth B categories.
- Sunday, May 10, 2026: SKY race over 20.5 km with 1,450 m D+ for Youth C and U23.
The ISF also confirms that this will be the tenth edition of the championships and the first to be held in Makarska, a venue that combines limestone rock, technical trails and a striking mountain-to-sea backdrop.
Spain’s full squad
FEDME’s final selection is divided into four official categories.
Youth A
- Mar González Gómez
- Lucas Gámez Zea
- Gerard Costa González
- Mattie Yañez Walkley
Youth B
- Núria Calzada Garrofé
- María Alisa Sushch Kikgeben
- Pol Mena Llobera
- Joan Guiteras Paixau
- Marc Font Rosell
Youth C
- Valeria Hernández Pérez
- Biel Sagués Rovira
- Emma Méndez Martínez
- Eloy Martínez Faro
U23
- Lluís Puigvert Palacios
- Pere Menéndez Ramírez
- Álvaro Osanz Laborda
- Laia Calzada Garrofé
- Nuria Llansó Bordes
There is a wider reading here too. FEEC provides a large share of the squad, but the team also includes athletes from FADMES, FGM, FCM and FAM. That suggests Spanish youth skyrunning still has strong regional hubs, but it no longer depends on a single territory.
Why this championship matters more than it may seem
Popular running coverage often gravitates towards major marathons, fast road races or headline-grabbing ultras. A youth skyrunning world championship may seem niche by comparison. In reality, it can be one of the clearest indicators of what is coming next in mountain running.
Events like this help answer practical questions:
- Which regions are developing young mountain runners well?
- Which athletes are comfortable on steep, technical terrain rather than only on runnable trails?
- How deep is a national team beyond its best-known names?
Spain heads to Makarska with several reasons to be taken seriously:
- It is fielding the maximum team size allowed by the ISF: 18 athletes.
- The format rewards both individual quality and overall team depth.
- The courses demand more than raw fitness: they require steep-climbing ability, technical movement and race control under pressure.
The ISF rules also make the team competition especially interesting. Team standings are built from the points scored by the best athletes in each category and discipline, with representation from both genders required. In plain terms, one star performance is not enough. A country needs balance, depth and repeatable execution across the whole weekend.
Makarska and Biokovo: short, steep and technical
This is one of those cases where the label truly matches the sport. The VERTICAL race packs almost 1,000 metres of ascent into 4.5 kilometres, which means pacing mistakes are heavily punished. Then the SKY races on Sunday add more time, more terrain reading and more opportunities for technical strength to make a difference.
That usually changes the athlete profile that shines:
- Aerobic fitness alone is not enough.
- Early climbing power matters.
- Efficient movement over broken ground matters.
- Decision-making under fatigue matters.
For younger runners in Spain, following this championship can also be genuinely useful. It shows what international mountain racing looks like when the course is designed for specialists, not for a softer hybrid trail event.
What to watch if you want to follow Spain closely
Looking only at the final medal table would miss much of the story. These are the main angles worth tracking.
1. Spain’s response in the VERTICAL
The Friday, May 8 race is a strong test of specific uphill power and pain tolerance. It often reveals who arrives in sharp form and who is ready to compete rather than simply take part.
2. Depth in Youth B and U23
Those categories have significant representation within the Spanish team. If Spain places several athletes well there, its collective position could improve quickly.
3. Sunday’s SKY races
The SKY format usually gives the clearest picture of all-round mountain racing ability because it mixes climbing, technical awareness and longer race management. Sunday often separates the fast athlete from the complete skyrunner.
4. Future names to remember
Championships like this are often an early signpost for athletes who may soon appear in senior national events, skyrunning series or higher-profile international races.
What this squad says about Spanish trail running
Without overselling it, the picture is encouraging. Spain is not attending with a token team. It is sending a full, structured squad into a demanding championship format. That points to continuity, development work and a talent base that still produces runners for steep and technical mountain racing.
It also reinforces an important idea for the broader running audience: Spanish trail running is not only built on famous ultras or established elite names. A significant part of the future is being shaped in vertical races, skyraces and youth championships like this one.
Key dates
- Thursday, May 7, 2026: Spanish team arrival and official parade in Makarska.
- Friday, May 8, 2026: VERTICAL race.
- Sunday, May 10, 2026: SKY races for all categories.
The main takeaway
Spain’s squad for the 2026 Youth Skyrunning World Championships is not just a list of names. It is a useful measure of the competitive health of young Spanish mountain running. If the team performs well in Makarska, that will matter not only as a weekend result, but also as another sign that the next wave of Spanish trail talent is moving in the right direction.