6th Vamvakou Mountain Run – 07/06/2026

Date: Sunday June, 7th 2026

Starting Time: 9:30

Starting Point: Vamvakou Laconia, Village Square

Finishing Point: Vamvakou, Village Square

Right to participate: Individuals over 18 years of age, in other words born before 06/07/2008, have the right to participate in the race. Participants must be in good physical condition and need to register online, otherwise they will be excluded from the race.

Symbolic Participation Fee: 20€

See more details about the 29km race and find the registration form here!

Date: Sunday June, 7th 2026

Starting Time: 9:30

Starting Point: Vamvakou Laconia, Village Square

Finishing Point: Vamvakou, Village Square

Right to participate: Individuals over 18 years of age, in other words born before 06/07/2008, have the right to participate in the race. Participants must be in good physical condition and need to register online, otherwise they will be excluded from the race.

Symbolic Participation Fee: 15€

See more details about the 19km race and find the registration form here!

Date: Sunday June, 7th 2026

Starting Time: 10:00

Starting Point: Vamvakou Laconia, Village Square

Finishing Point: Vamvakou, Village Square

Right to participate: Individuals over 18 years of age, in other words born before 06/07/2008, have the right to participate in the race. Participants must be in good physical condition and need to register online, otherwise they will be excluded from the race.

Symbolic Participation Fee: 7€

See more details about the 7km race and find the registration form here!

By your own vehicle, see the route here!

The event will provide participants with free transport by bus from Athens and Kalamata and in-between stops at Corinth, Tripoli and Sparti. The itineraries are as follows:

ATHENS
Gathering time: 4:45
Departure time: 5:00 the latest 
Meeting Point: Syntagma Square (Filellinon and Xenofontos) 
There will also be a stop at Palataki for the convenience of participants.

CORINTH
The bus from Athens will stop at the Isthmus of Corinth (Goody’s), where it will pick up those who have registered to travel from Corinth.

KALAMATA 
Gathering time: 6:30 
Departure time: 6:45 the latest 
Meeting Point: Entrance of Kalamata opposite KTEL of Kalamata (upstream) 

Attention! Register your interest in moving through the race booking form. If you do not declare a specific bus route during your registration, you will not be included in the list, so you will not be able to ride the bus as arranged by the event.

Pick-up of race pack

The race pack can be picked up only from the administration desk of the Run:
- Saturday June 6th between 17:00 and 20:00, Community Center of Vamvakou
– Sunday June 7th between 7:30 and 9:00, Village Square of Vamvakou

To serve you best, please bring along the email mentioning your BIB number, either in print or electronic format.

Technical description of Run:
Saturday, June 6, Vamvakou Square, detailed briefing
Sunday, June 7, at 9:00 a.m., at the starting point for all three routes, brief briefing

Arrival of athletes: Participants must be at the starting point of the race at least half an hour before the scheduled starting time.

Storage of personal items: If you wish to store your personal belongings before the start, there will be a space set up for this purpose, near the starting point. Your bag must be handed over the latest by 9:00 and will be returned to you, after finishing, by representatives of the event by demonstrating your BIB number.

The Participation Number / Runner’s Bib must always be visible during the race and at the finish line.

29km RACE: There will be 5 feed stations set up along the route of the long race, providing participants with water, isotonic drinks, gels, dried nuts, fruit and salt, according to the point of the route. There are also 3 additional water-only stations.

19km RACE: There will be 4 feed stations set up along the route of the long race, providing participants with water, isotonic drinks, gels, dried nuts, fruit and salt, according to the point of the route. There are also 2 additional water-only stations.

7km RACE: There will be one feed station along the route of the short race, providing participants with water, isotonic drinks, fruit and dried nuts. There is also one additional water-only station.

Moreover, water will be given to the runners at the starting and finishing points. At the finishing point, a light meal will be offered to the runners finishing the race.

For the long run 29 km-route, there are two cut-off limits which have been set at the 8th kilometer situated at the Mantres location and at the 21st kilometer of the route, situated at the Sparti Refuge location. Any athlete reaching the first point 2:15 hours and 5:00 hours at the second point after the start of the race is disqualified and will be taken to the finish point by vehicles of the organiser, as indicated by the judge in charge. If an athlete decides to continue, they must be very familiar with the mountain, bearing in mind that they are running at their own risk and be aware of the fact that signage will be lacking as the sweeper of the race will be collecting additional signage. Athletes who are dropping out for any reason must inform the judge at the nearest check point.

The time limit for the 29 km long route is set at 6:30 hours, ending at 16:00. Athletes finishing after this time are disqualified.

The time limit for the 19 km route is set at 4:30 hours, ending at 14:30. Athletes finishing after this time are disqualified.

The time limit for the shorter route (7 km) is set at 3 hours, ending at 13:00. Athletes finishing after this time are disqualified.

Full medical support will be provided to offer first aid throughout the Run. In any case, all runners are participating at their own risk, in accordance with the Participation Terms. Participants are recommended to proceed with medical exams before the race to ensure they are in good physical condition.

The safety of runners and spectators is of utmost importance to the organizing committee. The organiser is supervising the routes, to the extent that this is possible, in order to avoid any unforeseen incident and provides medical assistance to athletes who might need it. The organiser can modify the routes in case of risks for the safety of the athletes. They might also delay the start of the race or even cancel or postpone the race due to bad weather or other reason of force majeure.

Every year, we are collaborating with the Hellenic Police, the Road Traffic Police, the Hellenic Fire Service and the Red Cross of Sparti, the rescue team Etoimoklis and the Hellenic Rescue Team in order to ensure safety throughout our events.

We would like to thank the Municipality of Sparti, the Forestry Service of Sparti, the Hellenic Police and the Hellenic Fire-Fighting Service.

– Consult your doctor if you are suffering from some medical condition.

– Demonstrate sportsmanship throughout the event.

– Respect and follow the indications of the organizing committee.

– Do not forget to warm up before starting the race.

– Consume your last meal two hours before the race.

– Be well hydrated before and during the race.

– Get to the Starting Line on time.

– Follow your own pace and do not get carried away by the pace of other athletes.

– Do not dispose of bottles or other litter at the start, throughout the route and at the finish of the race.

– Every athlete approached by a faster athlete is obliged, if required, to move to the side so that the overtaking can be realized quickly and safely.

– It is prohibited for athletes to be accompanied in any part of the race by friends, relatives and pets.

– It is prohibited for athletes to get any external help or artificial assistance in between them, as well as help by any motor-driven means. The use of trekking poles, map and compass is allowed.

– The organising committee does not oblige athletes to have with them the following equipment. However, it is recommended for the longer route – and especially for beginners – to have with them: a small backpack with water bladder, a windbreaker jacket, solids, elastic bandage, whistle, mobile phone.

– It is prohibited to use headphones throughout the race.

– The Run supports the reduced use of plastic, so, there will be no plastic cups. The runners will be able to fill their personal water bottles at the feed stations.

– All athletes must have their own water drinkware (flask, bottle, container, cup).

On June 7th, as well as on the previous day, a series of activities for the whole family and educational programmes for children will take place in the village, as part of the initiative for the revival of Vamvakou with the support of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). The detailed weekend scheduled will be announced shortly here.

Moreover, the participants can find information for their stay in the village nearby areas here!

Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)