Enrique Llopis and Jael Bestue dominated at home, much to the joy of the Spanish spectators, despite imperfect performances at the Gran Premio Ciudad de Valencia, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Bronze meeting, on Saturday (31).
The joint Spanish record-holder and European silver medallist, Llopis, eased through his heat clocking 7.55 with the next best competitor, Greece’s Christos-Panagiotis Roumtsios, trailing behind within 7.88.
Then in the final Llopis led the charge from the gun, clearly winning the race to the first hurdle and, despite clashing into three hurdles, stormed to a dominant 7.53 win.
Considering that he had issues in his race that meant he knocked the hurdles, his performance shows the form he is in as Llopis’ time is just 0.03 off his season’s best.
Fellow countryman, Daniel Cisneros, followed the leader to open his season with his best time in two years of 7.73.
Roumtsios crossed for third in 7.81, setting a new personal best in his season opener and moving him to joint-eighth on the Greek all time records in the event.
Bestue rises to take 60m win
Bestue also took control of the 60m, but like Llopis her win didn’t come without some tribulations.
She passed through the heats with no concern, clocking 7.29 with USA’s Semira Killebrew the next fastest qualifier with 7.37.
But in the final when the gun went it almost looked like Bestue had initially been left behind, but her beautifully relaxed technique carried her through the pack, picking them off one by one until she had grasped a confident win of 7.24.
While it was not as sharp as time as her first competition of the year where she ran 7.21 and 7.18, this meet marked her sixth race this season under 7.30 – building crucial consistency ahead of the Kujawy Pomorze 2026 World Athletics Indoor Championships.
Venezuela’s Andrea Michelle Purica Guevara and Nediam Nori Vargas Arteaga placed second and third with 7.33 and 7.37 respectively.
Garcia’s kick to take the win
The men’s 1500m was dubbed the middle distance race of the night heading into the evening, and Adrian Ben and Mariano Garcia made sure that was the case.
As the race began, no one seemed to go with the pacer and instead the field left it until the final 200m to pick up the pace.
With one lap to go Ben held the lead but Garcia was poised and ready to pounce having sat on the Istanbul 2023 European indoor 800m champion’s shoulder the whole race – and that he did.
As the bell rang Garcia took off, catching Ben by surprise and storming ahead before slowing down to celebrate as he crossed the line in 3:37.22.
Martin Segurola finished in 3:37.57, pipping Ben on the line by just 0.02 after the Spanish trio led the rest of the field round the track. Marino Bloudek finished fourth in a Croatian indoor record of 3:37.77.
Ayansa and Arroyo stride to 800m wins
The reigning world U20 champion over 800m, shocked the field with his pace from the gun in Valencia, but General Berhanu Ayansa never tired and took the win in an unchallenged 1:46.61 in his first indoor competition ever.
Spain’s Pablo Sanchez-Valladares Garcia took second in 1:47.40 in his second race of the season, holding off Switzerland’s Ivan Pelizza who finished third in 1:47.67.
However the women’s race wasn’t dominated by just one athlete, with it all coming down to the final 50 metres where Rocio Arroyo stormed up the inside line to take a 2:04.15 win.
Spain’s Lorea Ibarzabal had to settle for second in 2:04.30 after trying to defend against Poland’s Julia Jaguscik, 2:04.31, and letting 22-year-old Arroyo through.
The Bergen 2025 European Athletics U23 Championships 800m silver medallist, Arroyo, had opened her season in Lyon with a much slower 2:09.28, but has sharpened up as she settles into the indoor season.
Italy's Micol Majori and Spain's Aleix Vives also won the 3000m in lifetime bests of 8:51.50 and 7:51.61 respectively.
Wins for Dospin and Guerra in jumps
Alexia Iona Dospin, Bergen 2025 European Athletics U23 champion, took the win in the Valencia with 13.23m, backing up her season opener of 13.32m.
However the Romanian had a far from clear sheet, measuring four no jumps in her series, but still held off the Spanish field behind her with Maria Gonzalez Sanchis in second with 12.84m.
In the men’s long jump Jaime Guerra took the win with a third round jump of 7.95, improving on his season opener of 7.84m from 18 January in Luxembourg.
The European indoor finalist managed to hold off Portugal’s 11-time national champion and world indoor finalist Gerson Balde, who measured 7.88m in the fourth and fifth round for second.