Marta García Alonso (born 1 January 1998) is a Spanish middle- and

long-distance runner Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely Aerobic exercise, aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance ru ...

competing for the On Athletics Club Europe. She won the bronze medal in the 1500 m at the

2019 Mediterranean Athletics U23 Indoor Championships The 2019 Mediterranean Athletics U23 Indoor Championships was an athletics (sport), athletics competition which was held in Miramas, France, 19 January 2019. A total of 16 events were contested, of which 8 by male and 8 by female athletes. Medal ...

, and she was the 2021 Spanish Indoor Athletics Championships and 2023 Spanish outdoor championships winner in the

3000 metres The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track. It is debated whether the 3000 m sho ...

and

5000 metres The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a sta ...

respectively.

Biography

García is from the

Province of León León (, ; ; ; ) is a province of northwestern Spain in the northern part of the Region of León and in the northwestern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. About one quarter of its population of 463,746 (2018) lives in the c ...

, where she started running from the age of three. She initially competed for the athletics division of the

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

club. By 2019, she had moved to

Palencia Palencia () is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Palencia. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula, in the northern half of ...

to be coached by Uriel Reguero in

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

. García's first international race was at the 2017 IAAF World Cross Country Championships – Junior women's race, where she was the 3rd scorer for Spain in 54th place, contributing to a 14th-place team finish. Following that at the

2017 European Cross Country Championships The 2017 European Cross Country Championships was the 24th edition of the cross country running competition for European athletes. It was hosted in Šamorín, Slovakia. As of the 2017 edition, the first three athletes from each nation counted tow ...

, García finished 13th overall in the U20 race and the first Spaniard ahead of teammates

Lucía Rodríguez Lucía Rodríguez may refer to: * Lucía Rodríguez (athlete) * Lucía Rodríguez (comedian) * Lucía Rodríguez (footballer) Lucía María Rodríguez Herrero (born 24 May 1999) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a right back fo ...

and

Carla Gallardo Carla Gallardo Puertas (born 9 February 1999) is a Spanish long-distance runner. She finished 7th at the 2018 IAAF World U20 Championships in 2018 IAAF World U20 Championships – Women's 3000 metres, the 3000 metres, and she contributed to the ...

, earning her team a bronze medal. That bronze medal result was improved upon at the

2018 European Cross Country Championships The 2018 European Cross Country Championships was the 25th edition of the cross country running competition for European athletes. It was hosted in Tilburg, Netherlands.2019 Mediterranean Athletics U23 Indoor Championships The 2019 Mediterranean Athletics U23 Indoor Championships was an athletics (sport), athletics competition which was held in Miramas, France, 19 January 2019. A total of 16 events were contested, of which 8 by male and 8 by female athletes. Medal ...

, García won a bronze medal in the women's 1500 m. She nearly won the silver, but was out-kicked by Alexa Lemitre of France. The medal contributed to Spain's second-place showing overall at the event, behind only the host France. García also competed at the 2019 European U23 Championships in the women's 1500 m, but she did not qualify for the finals. At the 2021 Spanish Indoor Athletics Championships, García won the 3000 m, her first senior national title. This earned her qualification to the

2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships The 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships was held from 4 to 7 March 2021 at the Arena Toruń in Toruń, Poland. This was the second time this event was held in Poland after the 1975 edition in Katowice. The four-day competition featured ...

, where García competed in the 3000 m and barely missed out on the finals. After what she thought was a good start tactically, García said she brushed with another runner with 400 m to go which hampered her final push. That race gave her confidence to try for the Olympic standards in the 1500 m and 5000 m, which she had previously said were out of reach. García ultimately was not selected for the Spanish Olympic team. In 2021, García signed with the

On Athletics Club On Athletics Club (OAC) is a training group of professional Distance running, distance runners sponsored by On (company), On. The team is coached by Dathan Ritzenhein and was founded in August 2020 with eight original members. OAC trains primaril ...

, joining

Carmela Cardama Báez Carmela Cardama Báez (born 4 December 1996) is a Spanish long-distance runner. She won the 2021 NCAA 10,000 m championship competing for the Oregon Ducks. From 2021 to 2024, she was a part of the On Athletics Club. Early and personal lif ...

as the other Spanish women's athlete on the team. García was entered in the 1500 m and 3000 m at the 2022 Mediterranean Games, but she did not start either event. At the 2022 European Championships 5000 m, García finished 12th in a 15:23.36

personal best A personal record, or a personal best (abbreviated to PB), is an individual's best performance in a given sporting discipline. It is most commonly found in athletic sports, such as track and field, other forms of running, swimming and weightlifting ...

. At the

2022 European Cross Country Championships The 2022 European Cross Country Championships was the 28th edition of the cross country running competition for European athletes. It was held on 11 December 2022 in La Mandria Park near Turin, Italy. Italy became the first country to have stag ...

, competing for the first time in the senior division, García finished 41st overall and did not score for the Spanish team, which placed 4th in the team standings. During the 2023 indoor season, García competed at the European Indoor Championships 3000 m, qualifying for the final and finishing 10th. Outdoors, García set her goal on achieving the Budapest World Athletics Championships standards in the 1500 m and 5000 m. Though she was not ultimately able to achieve them, she came closest at the 2023

Golden Gala Golden Gala is an annual Track and field, track and field event normally held at the Stadio Olimpico, Olympic Stadium in Rome, Italy. Previously one of the IAAF Golden League events, it is now part of the Diamond League. Following the 2013 deat ...

, where she was a part of

Faith Kipyegon Faith Chepngetich Kipyegon (born 10 January 1994) is a Kenyan Middle-distance running, middle and Long-distance running, long distance runner. Kipyegon is the current List of world records in athletics, world record holder for the 1500 metres, 1 ...

's world record-breaking 1500 m race and finished 14th in a personal best of 4:07.22. At the 2023 European Cross Country Championships, García was a member of the Spanish silver medal-winning team, but she was only the 5th Spaniard to finish and did not score for the team. She obtained a bronze medal in the

5000 m The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to or . It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over laps of a sta ...

at the

2024 European Athletics Championships The 26th European Athletics Championships were held from 7 to 12 June 2024 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy. It was the third time Italy staged this sporting event after the inaugural 1934 European Athletics Championships, 1934 edition in T ...

with a new personal best of 14:44.04, besting the 29-year old national record of Julia Vaquero in the process.

Statistics

International competitions

Personal bests

National titles

Spanish Athletics Championships The Spanish Athletics Championships () is an annual outdoor track and field competition organised by the Royal Spanish Athletics Federation (RFEA), which serves as the Spanish national championship for the sport. It is typically held as a two-day e ...

: 2022, 2023

Notes

References

External links

*
Marta García
at RFEA *
Marta García
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

Marta García – COE – Paris 2024
{{DEFAULTSORT:García, Marta Living people 1998 births Spanish female middle-distance runners Spanish female long-distance runners 21st-century Spanish sportswomen Spanish female cross country runners Mediterranean Games competitors for Spain Athletes from the Province of León Spanish Athletics Championships winners Athletes (track and field) at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Spain