The Mattoni Half Marathon Karlovy Vary will open the 2026 EuroHeroes series with something increasingly rare in European road racing, which is a field so balanced it might actually produce tension. On Saturday, May 16, last year’s winner Damián Vích, reigning EuroHeroes champion Khalid Choukoud, and a cluster of men who treat 64 minutes as a casual suggestion will line up in the spa town. The women’s race offers similar parity, headlined by Spain’s Meritxell Soler, defending champion Nóra Szabó, and a pair of Czech athletes who know the cobbles and corners of Karlovy Vary better than most.
It’s the equilibrium, rather than any single superstar, that gives this edition its spark. The opener of the EuroHeroes season blends title defences, emerging European talent, and a strong Czech presence. And on a course that winds through a UNESCO‑listed postcard, the race will be about more than just winning: early points, reputations, and the first plotlines of the season are all up for grabs.
Men: Vích returns to the scene of the crime
Domestic eyes will naturally drift toward Damián Vích, who last year delivered one of the great Czech moments on this course, where he broke the race open late and soloed home in 1:04:23, a new Czech record for Karlovy Vary. Since then, he’s trimmed his half‑marathon best to 1:02:52 in Berlin, suggesting he’s not merely defending a title but upgrading the armoury.
But the defence won’t be ceremonial. Germany’s Jan Lukas Becker arrives with the fastest mark of the year—1:01:20 from Barcelona—and looks like one of the more intriguing new faces in the EuroHeroes ecosystem. Italy’s Nikolas Loss, born in 2001 and already at 1:02:28, represents the rising generation, while Sweden’s Emil Millán de la Oliva (1:02:44) brings the kind of range that makes him dangerous on any profile.
And then there’s Khalid Choukoud. His 1:01:53 PB may date back to 2013, but the Dutchman has made a career out of ignoring the calendar. He won here in 2024, topped the EuroHeroes standings last year, and added České Budějovice to his résumé in 2025. On a course that rewards tactical maturity as much as raw pace, experience is not a footnote—it’s a weapon.
Continuity comes in the form of Paavo De Leng, runner‑up to Vích last year and fresh off a 1:04:56 in Berlin. Spain’s Artur Bossy (1:03:23), Dutch prospect Carsten Kok, and Greece’s Panagiotis Karaiskos add further depth. The Czech contingent—Vích, Jiří Homoláč, Ondřej Fejfar, Karel Splítek, and Štěpán Maaz—ensures the home crowd will have more than one storyline to follow.
Women: A Spanish duel, a returning champion, and Czech firepower
The women’s race may be even more tightly wound. Spain’s Meritxell Soler leads the list with her 1:09:30 from Berlin, returning after finishing second last year despite an early fall. This is proof that she can handle both adversity and asphalt. She was runner‑up in the 2025 EuroHeroes standings and a winner in Olomouc, making her one of the series’ most consistent protagonists.
Her compatriot Caroline Robles (1:09:38) is likely her biggest threat, a runner who has shown across surfaces that she belongs in international company. Britain’s Natasha Wilson (1:09:54) joins the sub‑70 club on the start list, rounding out a trio that could push the pace from the gun.
But the emotional centrepiece is the return of Nóra Szabó. The Hungarian won here last year in 1:11:00, then proceeded to dominate the EuroHeroes standings. She ran much of the 2025 race alone, proving that predictability in Karlovy Vary is a myth—unless you’re Szabó, in which case consistency is the brand.
The depth continues with Portugal’s Monica Silva (1:11:37) and Spain’s Cristina Silva (1:13:20), both capable of shaping the early rhythm.
From the Czech perspective, the spotlight falls on Michaela Čepová and Eva Vrabcová Nývltová. Čepová’s 1:13:07 in Prague marks her as one of the country’s most promising new‑generation athletes. Vrabcová Nývltová, meanwhile, is a national icon—holder of the best Czech performance on this course (1:11:54 from 2018), coach of Friday’s shakeout run, and still competitive enough to make the front pack nervous.
EuroHeroes 2026 begins here
Karlovy Vary is the first of four stops in the 2026 EuroHeroes series, which last year crowned Khalid Choukoud and Nóra Szabó. With only the two best performances counting toward the standings, the opener can be deceptively influential. A strong run here often becomes the season’s compass.
The race starts Saturday, May 16, at 18:00 from the Hotel Thermal. Whether the evening produces fast times, title defences, Czech records, or simply the first meaningful points of the season, the elite fields suggest one of the most compelling Karlovy Vary editions in recent memory. And on a course framed by a UNESCO‑listed city, the sport once again gets the kind of backdrop it rarely deserves but always appreciates.
EuroHeroes, launched by RunCzech and the European Athletics Association in 2018, continues its mission into a sixth season: to identify, support, and elevate European distance‑running talent. If Karlovy Vary is any indication, the search for new heroes remains in very capable hands.
