Iván Penalba

Knowing a little about Iván Penalba

Iván Penalba (Alfafar, October 6, 1991) is a unique and unrepeatable athlete. His head, his legs and his heart are forged for feats and records that the vast majority of lovers of running They would never arise. Running ultra-distance on a track or on a circuit is his passion and, as he assures, what gives meaning to his life. Since 2018 he has been part of the world ultra-distance track elite.

Personal sporting achievements…

Iván Penalba is a crusher of kilometers and also of records. He currently holds three ultra-distance records in Spain: in 24 hours (274,330 km), in 12 hours (158,631 km), and in 100 miles (until recently he also had the 6-hour and 60-mile ones). His name is listed in the Guinness World Records book as the world record holder for 12 hours on tape (155,080 km). But in addition, his sports curriculum accumulates other milestones that make him a unique athlete:

• First Spaniard on the Bad podiumwater 135 (2nd in 2022)
• World top 3 in ultrafondo by hours in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.
• Winner of the 24-hour track race at Soochow International University in Taipei (Taiwan) in 2018.
• Best result of a Spaniard in the Spartathlon (2021), the most mythical ultra-fondo race on the road that takes place in Greece.
• 5th place in the 24 2019-hour World Championship (Albi, France), the best result (270,1 kms) and position of a Spaniard in a world championship.
• 4th place in the 24 2022-hour European Championship (Verona, Italy), the best result (273,4 kms) of a Spaniard in a European race.
• 1st in the 24 hours of Venice 2023, with 254 km.

What you may not know about Iván is…

Iván Penalba grew up thinking that his sport was soccer, but at the age of 20 a lower back injury forced him to forget about the ball and that's when he started running. In 2013 he ran his first half marathon, in 2016 he made his debut in the marathon and that same year he participated in a charity challenge in Barcelona that made him fall in love with ultrafondo. «It was a solidarity challenge: being part of a team of four popular runners who had to complete 48 hours (12 hours each) to raise money to buy toys for kids. I had never considered running for 12 hours straight before, but I embarked on the challenge”; he won the 12-hour test and achieved the best mark in Spain in 2016. From that moment on, ultrafondos settled in his life and became his therapy when the Alzheimer's monster gradually took his mother from him. Being in his twenties he dedicated himself body and soul to taking care of his mother. «It was a very hard time and running was my therapy, it was what helped me to be able to help her. I spent many hours taking care of her at home and I would go running at dawn, which was what allowed me to recharge with excitement to return to her side with a smile on my lips."

The day Alzheimer's permanently stole his mother, Iván was already one of the best track ultra-distance runners in Spain, but from that moment on he set out to be one of the best in the world to dedicate each and every one of his successes to his two "princesses": her deceased mother and her grandmother, who has always been by her side to act as grandmother, mother and number 1 fan. «I have always said that to dedicate yourself to ultra-distance you have to have a reason that pushes you to disconnect from the world. Most of the ultra-distance runners I know started because of some family or personal problem because it is a sporting activity that allows you to isolate yourself and disconnect from the world for a few hours; In my case it was my mother's illness. I think it is difficult for a person with a normal life to dedicate themselves to ultradistance.comments Ivan.