2025 Recap… and when will we see you in 2026?

And that’s a wrap! Vltava Run 2025 is now history — but before we look ahead to the next edition, the thirteenth one, let’s take one final look back at this year’s unforgettable twelfth!

303 teams. 3,580 runners.
New faces at the start line, as well as familiar ones who haven’t missed a single edition!
For the tenth time, the visually impaired team Leontinka joined the race, and we also welcomed children from orphanages led by Tomáš Slavata! A new course record was set too – the youngest runner, just 12 years old, ran two full legs with an adult companion!

Solo runners hit the track again this year. Despite unexpected injuries and other setbacks, two solo warriors – Adéla Stejskalová and Radek David – made it to the finish line. Their journey was, hands down, the most followed story on our social media! This brings the total number of solo runners to an even ten.

So, who won this year?
Everyone who crossed that finish line! We always look forward to welcoming you at the end — your smiles and emotions are the greatest reward for us!
You are all heroes for stepping out of your comfort zones for an entire weekend and conquering the 375 km course from Zadov to Prague, together.

As for the podium – we saw some familiar champions, but also some fresh new faces, promising exciting rivalries at the front of the pack in years to come! 

Teams with 10 - 12 runners

  1. WINEHOUSE.CZ

  2. Poko Running Team

  3. MCSCH_team

Teams with 6 - 9 runners

  1. PUMA TEAM RACEDAY

  2. Running Sushi 2.0

  3. Nemluv a běž!!!
     

Women category

  1. WINEHOUSE.CZ GIRLS

  2. Powerfool girls

  3. Preti girls

The fastest team, WINEHOUSE.cz, completed the course in under 24 hours — and every single one of you finished in under 40!

From the organizers' perspective, we introduced several new things this year:

  • We refreshed the Friday check-in with partner booths and the opportunity to personally pick up their gifts — which lightened the load for team captains and gave everyone one more reason to stop by the start line the night before the run.

  •  Our brand-new PUMA & Vltava Run merch was a huge hit — thank you for the enthusiasm!

  • We got rid of the trackers after last year’s issues (we know how frustrating that was for everyone), and since no provider could guarantee 100% functionality for the entire race, we chose not to include them this year.

  • We also launched a brand-new VR app — and based on your feedback, you liked it, which makes us very happy!

  • We scrapped official time predictions and instead offered you a predictive spreadsheet. While we tried to fine-tune it for this edition, we’ll keep improving the algorithm to better match the pacing of as many teams as possible.


Most of you reported accurate predicted times, but there were still a few surprises — not everyone has their race form perfectly dialed in (whether in your head, your watch, or your app). We had to temporarily stop 5 teams overnight to avoid early arrival at unopened exchange points. The record for prediction vs. actual finish? A team that crossed the finish line five hours ahead of their declared time! While energy gels (and other legal boosts) can do wonders, we’re not sure that’s what made the difference this time.

We also issued a one-hour penalty to a team that broke one of our core rules: a runner may not run two consecutive legs. This has been an important learning moment for us — we’ll make sure to give more attention and clearer guidance to international teams in future editions. We promise. And we believe they’d promise not to do it again.

It wasn’t just runners delivering top performances — the exchange point crews were incredible this year, both in organization and with the snacks, drinks, and good vibes they prepared for you!

According to your feedback, the top three exchange points of 2025 were:

  1. Věžovatá Pláně

  2. Purkarec

  3. HlubokĂĄ nad Vltavou


We’re truly grateful to everyone involved, and we’ll be sure to pass on your praise — and reward them properly, of course!
You can check out what made Věžovatá Pláně so special in our latest video!

 Speaking of feedback — thank you so much for all of it!
We received nearly 530 responses to our post-race survey, and we truly appreciate the time and thought you put into your answers. Your feedback is an invaluable source of insight — both for celebrating what worked well and identifying the areas where we can improve or innovate for next year.

 One recurring comment stood out: a few teams said they didn’t feel they had enough information — even though everything was sent via e-mail, shared in the captain’s presentation, and included in the race guide. So yes, we will work even harder on clarity and communication… but please promise us you’ll read the e-mails next time!
We’re happy to hear that the overall experience was positive for most of you, and we’ll do our best to fine-tune anything that didn’t quite hit the mark.

We had four extra photographers out on the course this year, doing their best to capture as many of you in action as possible.
You’ll find over 6,500 photos in our PHOTO GALLERY, all tagged by team number (if visible) to make your search easier. Hopefully, you’ll spot yourself in there!

It’s been two weeks since Vltava Run…and we’re already at the beginning of the next one!
So open your calendars and mark the dates:
The 13th edition of Vltava Run will take place — as tradition has it — on the second weekend of May: May 9–10, 2026.

Registration opens again this autumn, so don’t forget to follow us to stay in the loop!

Oh — and speaking of autumn:
We’re cooking up something brand new. While it’s not specifically for Vltava Run runners, we have a feeling it might catch your interest:

CAMINO DE DRAGONES – a relay run from the Pyrenees to Barcelona.
Registration opens this fall. The race will take place in June 2026.
So… who’s in?

Take care, enjoy the spring and upcoming summer days, and we can’t wait to see you — on the course or anywhere along the way.

Thank you for being part of this with us
 Květa, MĂ­ĹĄa, Láďa & JĂĄja
 Your Vltava Run Team