Por Pablo Arranz 
The Italian athlete Fabio Ruga has won the XIX edition of the ‘Vertical Climb to the Gran Hotel Bali’ that took place this morning with a time of 4’30”. In the women’s category, the winner was the Croatian tea Faber with a time of 5’30”, setting a new record for the race. In the men’s category, the podium was completed by Iván Vuletic (4’40”) and Klaus Hausteitner (4’41”), in second and third place respectively, while in the women’s category, the second place was taken by Kamila Chomanicova (5’49”) and the third by Klaudia Krajewska (6’05”).
The trophy presentation was attended by the councilors of Presidency and Culture, Juan Díaz and Jaime Jesús Pérez, while the councilor of Sports, Javier Jordá, and the first deputy mayor, Ana Pellicer, took part in the race.
Once again, the race has been a real success in terms of participation and anticipation generated long before. It is one of the classic events of the ‘Towerrunning World Association’ circuit, with the maximum number of registrations filled well in advance. For the eighth consecutive year, the race is included in the international circuit calendar. With its 52 floors, 924 steps, and 190 meters of elevation gain, the stair climb at the Bali has become a worldwide reference in the specialty.
A total of 500 athletes participated in the race in the three established categories: Equipped Firefighters, Open, and Elite, with participants from countries such as Spain, Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic, Canada, Mexico, Slovakia, Croatia, England, Poland, or Austria, with seven of the top ten participants competing in the stair race.
The first race, the Equipped Firefighters, started at ten in the morning. In the men’s category, Carlos Tejeda finished first, ahead of Félilx Ángulo and Ángel García. In the women’s category, the winner was Mavi Gomis, with Marina Corrales coming in second.
At 11:00, the Open category began, with groups of four starting every 30 seconds. In the men’s category, David Robles finished first, followed by Marc Rocadembosch and Mario de la Fuente, while in the women’s category, Luz Martínez emerged victorious, with Mavi Gomis and Marina Corrales on the podium. Among the local runners, Rubén Suárez took the top spot ahead of Domingo Seguí and Mikel Martínez for the men, and Elena Viedma won for the women, beating Yassmine Ait and Pilar Salmerón.