Dubrovnik’s running weekend ended with the 21K and 5K races
The final day of Du Motion 2026 brought Dubrovnik’s jubilee running weekend to a lively close, with both the Dubrovnik 21K and the Dubrovnik 5K taking over the city on 26 April. Together, the two races rounded off a sports weekend that once again turned Dubrovnik into one of the Adriatic’s most distinctive running stages.
Ivanovski and Carruthers led the half marathon
In the Dubrovnik Half Marathon, the fastest man was Dario Ivanovski of North Macedonia, who finished in a record 1:06:30, while the women’s race was won by Hayley Carruthers of Great Britain in 1:24:14. Their performances gave the 21-kilometre event an emphatically international finish and underlined the competitive level of this year’s edition.
The half marathon remains the event’s headline race, and Du Motion’s own description of the course presents it as a route that gradually reveals both the Old City nucleus and the Dubrovnik coastline, which helps explain why it continues to attract runners from across the world.
Milanović and Budalica Mijalić were the fastest in the 5K
The Dubrovnik 5K added a more open, city-wide running atmosphere to the final day. The fastest male finisher was Filip Milanović, who completed the race in 19 minutes, while the women’s race was won by Azra Budalica Mijalić in 24:07.
That shorter race has become one of the event’s most accessible formats, and Du Motion’s official presentation describes it as a distance that naturally draws in all generations of Dubrovnik locals and their guests.
A running weekend with a wider international feel
Although these two races brought the sporting programme to its close, they were also part of a much broader picture. Earlier local reporting around this year’s event described Du Motion 2026 as a record-breaking edition, with almost 3,000 runners from 55 countries taking part across the weekend. That gave the whole festival a noticeably international energy, while still keeping its Dubrovnik identity firmly intact.
Another strong edition for Dubrovnik’s spring calendar
What makes Du Motion work so well in Dubrovnik is that it never feels like just another city race. The setting is too specific for that. From the walls and the waterfront to the Old Town atmosphere that surrounds the event, the whole weekend feels both sporting and distinctly local. This is an editorial reading based on the official race descriptions and local coverage of the event.
With the 21K and 5K now complete, Du Motion 2026 closes as another strong entry in Dubrovnik’s spring calendar — competitive, well-attended and visibly international, but still rooted in the city that hosts it.
