Benalmádena's family-friendly turkey race celebrates 40th anniversary

It was 1983 when Benalmádena town hall, then led by Enrique Bolín, announced a municipal sports board and a job as its director. Four people applied for the position, and one of them was Juan Correal, who was 23-years-old at the time and had just graduated with a degree in Physical Education.

Born in Puertollano, this man from La Mancha had to look at a map to know how to get to Benalmádena when he came for his interview. When he arrived, he recalls the moment he looked out from the viewpoint from the Jardines del Muro and was captivated by what he saw. The whole of Benalmádena rose before him, with the calm sea and the many orchards and allotments, which have since been replaced by houses.

Today, forty years later, and just a year away from his retirement from the municipal sports board, he recalls that day with the same enthusiasm he had back then. And he recalls this day to tell the story of the Turkey Race, the Carrera del Pavo, a sports event, but above all, a Christmas one. An event that makes many people say "you are not from Benalmádena if you have never done the Turkey Race".

This year the race celebrates its 40th anniversary, eclipsing its sporting origins over the years to become an unmissable event for families and friends in the town.

The strange thing about the Turkey Race of Benalmádena is that two men from La Mancha came up with the idea: Correal, who was put in charge as director of the board, and his friend Juan Carlos Maestro. Juan Carlos came to Benalmádena with no job prospect at the time but merely with the knowledge that Benalmádena was a nice place to live. He decided to follow his friend, and "worked by my side for six months helping me until he was finally hired by the board," explained Correal. Juan Carlos himself retired last year.

Both of them are largely to thank for the development of sports in the town during the past four decades. But perhaps their most influential work came when they both came up with the idea of copying the Turkey Race, which was already being held in Ciudad Real in the 80s.

The idea was simple, an easy race, suitable for anyone, and a turkey as the prize for the winner. "At first we awarded live turkeys and it was a ridiculous situation," said Correal laughing, saying that it left the winner of the prize "in a predicament" because they did not know what to do with the bird. Over the years, they changed the prize to a frozen turkey.

The first year of the race had around 300 participants, a figure that has climbed over the years, reaching 3,400 runners. This year's Turkey Race will take place on Sunday 17 December and a total of eight turkeys will be given out as prizes in the 22 categories. The race will be 4.5km in total, with the start/finish line at the Arroyo de la Miel sports centre.