The highly anticipated Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon is one of the most exciting mountain marathons on the global calendar. In a stacked race wrought with superb tactics and gutsy running, the 2025 edition certainly didn’t disappoint. Elhousine Elazzaoui of Morocco and Sara Alonso of Spain stormed to victory in 3:43:28 and 4:27:25.
The 24th edition of Zegama comes at the halfway point of the highly contested 2025 Golden Trail World Series. The 42-kilometer race took place on Sunday, May 25, in the spectacular Aizkorri-Aratz Natural Park in Spain’s Basque Country.
Elhousine Elazzaoui amidst Zegama’s raucous fans near the Sancti Spiritu checkpoint during the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
The race accumulates over 2,700 meters of climbing across four of the region’s highest peaks: Aratz, Aizkorri, Aitxuri, and Andraitz. The rugged terrain and steep, rocky climbs make for a highly technical course, and the unpredictable local climate often results in difficult running conditions. However, a recent spell of dry, sunny weather made for mud-free trails and blistering speeds over the runnable sections.
Read on for the full race report.
The start of the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
2025 Zegama Marathon Men’s Race
With Kilian Jornet, last year’s champion and 11-time winner, absent this year, the door was wide open for a new name to be inscribed in Zegama’s history books. Elhousine Elazzaoui of Morocco was runner-up in 2024, and has already had a great start to the season, with a win at the Chianti Half Trail. He ran a perfectly executed race, sticking with the front before taking the lead in the last major climb around 12 kilometers from the finish. Earlier this week, iRunFar’s data scientists explained how this exact race strategy has been the most frequently used to win the race in its long history.
Andreu Blanes of Spain was the early leader, pulling away quickly to gain a one-minute lead over the chasing pack by the first checkpoint at 8.5k. Although Blanes has been relatively discrete on the trail running circuit in recent years, his past achievements include winning Sierre-Zinal in 2022 and sixth place in the Classic race at the 2022 World Mountain and Trail Running Championships.
Blanes continued to lead through the steep climb to Aratz at 16k and back down into Sancti Spiritu at 20k. A group of six runners followed him around one minute behind, including Elazzoui, Italian runners Daniel Pattis, Nadir Maguet, and Luca Del Pero, and Thomas Cardin of France.
Elhousine Elazzaoui winning the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
Pattis and Elazzaoui used the climb to the ridgeline toward Aketegi to overtake Blanes. Blanes refused to let them get away, however, clinging on through the descent and regaining the lead on the fast, flat section between Oltze and Urdia, between 23k to 29k into the race.
Elazzaoui made his move around 30k, powering into the lead in the climb to Andraitz, and from there it was his race. Elhousine Elazzaoui flew down the final descent to win in 3:43:28, over seven minutes ahead of second-place finisher Andreu Blanes, who finished in 3:50:53. Daniel Pattis rounded off the podium, crossing the line in third in 3:51:40.
Andreu Blanes taking second at the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
2025 Zegama Marathon Men’s Results
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- Elhousine Elazzaoui (Morocco) – 3:43:28
- Andreu Blanes (Spain) – 3:50:53
- Daniel Pattis (Italy) – 3:51:40
- Luca Del Pero (Italy) – 3:54:19
- Lorenzo Beltrami (Italy) – 3:54:58
- Thomas Cardin (France) – 3:55:34
- Antonio Martínez Pérez (Spain) – 3:56:42
- Nicolás Molina (Spain) – 3:58:51
- Stian Angermund (Norway) – 3:59:46
- Marcin Kubica (Poland) – 3:59:50
(Stian Angermund served a 16-month doping ban after testing positive for the prohibited masking agent chlortalidone at the 2023 OCC race in France.)
Daniel Pattis finish third at the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
2025 Zegama Marathon Women’s Race
Sara Alonso went into the race as the firm local favorite on her first return to Zegama since her third-place finish in 2022. Having grown up in the area, her knowledge of the course was second to none, and her sights were firmly set on a win. She went out hard, leading the race from start to finish and crossing the line in 4:27:25, two minutes ahead of second place finisher Judith Wyder of Switzerland. A strong run from Malen Osa, Alonso’s fellow Basque runner, saw her move through the rankings from around the halfway point to round off the women’s podium.
Alonso wasted no time off the starting line, moving quickly up the first climb through the first checkpoint at 8.5k, arriving almost a minute ahead of the rest of the field. Behind her, Wyder led the chasing pack made up of Patricia Pineda of Spain, and local runner Oihana Kortazar, with Sylvia Nordskaar of Norway, the returning champion, just behind.
The field separated up the steep climb up to Aratz, and by the summit at 16.1k, Alonso had extended her lead to three minutes. Wyder was in second, followed closely by Swiss runner Theres Leboeuf, with Rosa Lara Feliu of Spain following behind.
Sara Alonso winning the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
After a conservative start, Osa made a big move through the descent into Sancti Spiritu at 20k, coming through the checkpoint in sixth place. A strong climb up to the race’s highest point, Aitxuri at 23k, saw her move further up the ranks, and by 26k, she had overtaken Leboeuf and Lara Feliu, running just behind Wyder in third place.
Alonso continued to power ahead, and by 28.5k she had extended her lead to over five minutes. With one last climb before the final descent to the finish, her victory seemed all but sealed. However, the remaining podium places were still largely up in the air, with less than one minute separating the second- through fifth-place runners. Wyder was running less than a minute ahead of Osa, who was still just ahead of Leboeuf and Lara Feliu.
It was a thrilling close to the race. Sara Alonso powered down to the finish, crossing the line to win in 4:27:25. A strong finish from Judith Wyder in the closing kilometers saw her finish second in 4:29:47. Malen Osa held onto her position to cross the line in third place in 4:31:18, less than one minute ahead of Rosa Lara Feliu.
Judith Wyder running near the Sancti Spiritu checkpoint on her way to finishing second at the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
2025 Zegama Marathon Women’s Results
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- Sara Alonso (Spain) – 4:27:25
- Judith Wyder (Switzerland) – 4:29:47
- Malen Osa (Spain) – 4:31:18
- Rosa Lara Feliu (Spain) – 4:32:00
- Theres Leboeuf (Switzerland) – 4:33:29
- Ikram Rharsalla Laktab (Spain) – 4:37:39
- Ida Amelie Robsahm (Norway) – 4:38:41
- Oihana Kortazar (Spain) – 4:42:59
- Patricia Pineda (Spain) – 4:44:22
- Marta Martínez (Spain) – 4:44:29
Malen Osa taking third at the 2025 Zegama-Aizkorri Marathon. Photo: ©️ Zegama-Aizkorri
