Report from Jane Yates
Three Border Liners, Keith Tonkin, Christine Kiddier and myself (Jane Yates), headed to Segovia, an hour north of Madrid, for the final weekend of the 2026 City Race Euro Tour. With over 1,200 competitors from 25 countries, including around 100 Brits, it was quite an international gathering of orienteers.
The aim of the City Race Euro Tour is touristic orienteering, combining the challenge of urban navigation with opportunities to discover some of Europe’s most beautiful and historic places. Segovia, with its magnificent Roman aqueduct, cathedral, fairy tale castle and maze of medieval streets, certainly fitted the bill.
The weekend was expertly organised by Club Segovia Orientación (Segovia O), with three races over two days and a wonderful party atmosphere at each event centre, complete with a DJ and Zumba dancing at the final event. Not your average orienteering event centre.
Although we were all flying the Border Liners flag, we were also enjoying the weekend with different groups of orienteering friends. Keith and Christine were with members of their former club, Guildford Orienteers, while I joined a longstanding group of orienteering friends from AIRE, DVO and SYO. One of the pleasures of these international events is catching up with familiar faces from different clubs, with plenty of opportunities for socialising as well as competing.
Saturday morning’s middle-distance race at El Pinarillo offered stunning views of Segovia from a forested recreational area. Keith started as he meant to go on, finishing first in the Men’s Ultravet category, while Christine came fifth. I, meanwhile, decided that control four deserved a second visit, returning to it after punching control five. After all, why visit a control only once when you can get twice the value from your entry fee?
Saturday afternoon brought an urban sprint at La Granja de San Ildefonso, about 20 minutes from Segovia, with a spectacular backdrop of mountains and the magnificent Royal Palace. Keith stormed round in an impressive 9 minutes 27 seconds, beating fellow competitor James Crawford by just 16 seconds. Christine finished an excellent second. The sprint was my best race of the weekend, with a pleasing finish well into the top half of my class results.
Sunday’s grand finale was the Segovia City Race, taking us through beautiful historic streets, past the magnificent Roman aqueduct and around the city’s many steps and alleyways. The finish was particularly brutal, with a final climb up the steps beside the aqueduct, just when your legs were hoping the hard work was over. Keith completed his third win of the weekend, while Christine finished fourth. I managed to incorporate the scenic route down some steep steps from a viewing point on the aqueduct into my run, entirely in keeping with the touristic aims, of course.
One amusing challenge was the start procedure, with bib numbers and start times called out in Spanish. Fortunately, I could translate, so at least I knew when to set off from the pre-start.
The overall results were excellent. Keith won the Men’s Ultravet category, receiving a medal and a rather unusual prize bag of beans, biscuits and cheese. Christine finished third overall in the Women’s Ultravet category, winning a medal and a lovely ceramic bowl. Between them, they had both the food and something to serve it in.
My personal highlight came with the publication of the final 2026 City Race Euro Tour rankings after the event. Having competed in Warsaw in March, Canterbury in June and Segovia in October, I was delighted to discover I’d finished 10th overall in the series in the Women’s Supervet category.
There was plenty of sightseeing too. After Sunday’s race, I clearly hadn’t climbed enough steps and joined a tour group tackling another 190 steps to the top of Segovia Cathedral. The views were certainly worth the effort. We were also lucky enough to experience the San Frutos festival, with dancing in the main square and processions of children and adults in traditional costumes. It all added to the wonderful atmosphere of the weekend.
Anyone who knows me well will know that I have long harboured ambitions of bringing a Euro City Race to Carlisle. I think it would make a fantastic location, although organising one might have to wait until my retirement. In the meantime, I’m very happy to pick up tips from events like Segovia, where the organisation, atmosphere and integration with the city were particularly impressive. However, the production of a catchy music video about the Segovia City Race featuring the impressive aqueduct, is going to take some beating!
I’m already looking forward to next year’s tour, especially events in my childhood home city of Bristol and then in Leeds, with hopefully a couple more trips abroad to Cádiz in Spain and Lecce in Italy.
Many thanks to Segovia O for a fantastic weekend of orienteering in a spectacular setting. The City Race Euro Tour really does offer a wonderful combination of competition, travel and discovering new places.
Website with maps and further photos: Segovia City Race 2026 (🇬🇧) – Segovia-O
Website for City Race Euro Tour with all next year’s dates and locations: City Race Euro Tour – City orienteering
