Swimrun Canary Islands

The Swimrun Canary Islands, or Swimrun Canarias, is a series of 3 events taking place in the beautiful Canary Islands. The Islands are part of Spain, and form an archipelago located off the coast of North West Africa.

They are rugged, volcanic islands and are particularly known for their black and white sandy beaches. They were not named after the yellow canary type of bird! The name is derived from the Latin word for dog: 'canaria', which is the root of our modern word 'canine'.

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The Swimrun Canary Islands series takes place on 3 of the islands - Tenerife, La Palma, and finally Gran Canaria. Tenerife is the largest of the islands, dominated by dormant volcano Mount Teide, and the island has many beaches with sands in both yellow and black colors.

Fuerteventura is the second largest island, and is known for its strong winds and pristine coastline of white sand beaches. Gran Canaria is known as a continent in miniature, with diverse landscapes and vast sand dunes.

Swimrun competitors running on a sandbar on the Canary Islands.

Beautiful beaches of the Canary Islands

The Series started in 2017 in Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria, and in the fourth edition of the series (2020) Tenerife joined the Series. This year (2024) La Palma has replaced Fuerteventura.

With many Swimrun events being cancelled in 2020 and 2021, the Canary Islands series was fortunate to be able to run their events, although at a later date than planned! There are team and solo events racing through beaches, rocky areas, trails and natural areas of the different islands.

2024 dates are now set - Check our Swimrun Calendar Europe 2024!

Swimrun Canary Islands
(Islas Canarias)

Swimrun Tenerife

Date: 23rd June 2024

There are 2 styles of race; one is for pairs of competitors (Interclub Teams), in a relay style, covering a total of 2,800 metres of swimming (4 x 700m) and 10.7km of running over 4 laps of the course.

Both events take you swimming in the salt water and running on asphalt, pavement, trails and volcanic rock. The water temperature is anticipated to be between 18 and 21 degrees C.

Interclub Teams

Map of a swimrun race in the Canary Islands.

Open Solo

The other event is called Open Solo, for solo racers. It is basically half the distance of the other event, but you are doing it all yourself instead of in relay fashion. So there is 6,700 metres of swimming and 5.3km of running, completing 2 circuits of the course.

Swimrun Canarias

Check out the video below from the 2020 Swimrun Tenerife event!

Swim Run Canary Islands

La Palma

Swimrun La Palma

Date: 13th October 2024

The La Palma event is hosted in Santa Cruz, on the east coast of the island, in a relatively sheltered bay. There are 2 distances - the Open distance of 8.785 km and the Sprint distance of 11.44 km.

Open Distance

The Open distance has a total distance of 8,785 metres, with 1,700 metres of swimming and just over 7,000 metres of running, for a swim to run ratio of approximately 1:4, or 25% swimming, which is relatively high for swimrun! There is a time limit of 2 hours 15 minutes.

Map of the La Palma Open 2024 swimrun event.

Sprint Distance

The Sprint distance is 11,400 metres in total, (longer than the Open event), with 2,100 metres of swimming and 9,300 metres of running. This gives a swim to run ratio of 1:5, or 20%. There is a slightly longer time limit at 2 hours 45 minutes.

The terrain for both distances is asphalt, pavement, trails and sand, with sea temperature between 18 and 22 degrees C.

Gran Canaria

Date: 10th November 2024

This event is the last of the Canary Islands series in the season, and relatively late, in November. It is held in Maspalomas and is hosted by San Bartolome de Tirajana. This is an Ötillö Merit event. There are 2 races, the Merit event at 30km and the Sprint at 9.8km.

Water temperature is anticipated between 16 and 20 degrees C., as the Atlantic Ocean cools after the summer.

Great T-shirts for the Swimrun Gran Canaria

Sprint Distance

The Sprint distance is open to solo racers and teams. There is a total of 5.4km of swimming and 25km or running, giving a swim to run ratio of 1:5, or 20%, which is pretty average. Swims are, of course, in the sea, and the runs take place on sand, pavement and stones - mixed surfaces, then. Participants have 6 hours to complete the route.

Map of swimrun event route Gran Canaria 2024

Ötillö Merit Distance

The Merit race covers a total distance of 30.4km, made up of 5.4km swimming and 25km running (more than a half marathon). The swim to run ratio is therefore 1:5, or approximately 20%. The terrain is the same as in the Sprint and participants have 6 hours to complete the route. Being an Ötillö Merit race means that it must have a significant degree of difficulty!