Deporte, cultura, turismo y medio ambiente: el caso de la Trailwalker Intermon-Oxfam en Cataluña

The Oxfam Trailwalker is a sporting and charitable challenge which, since 1981, has become an international Oxfam fundraising event that now takes place in 11 countries around the world. It was held for the first time in Spain in Catalonia in 2011. Among the features that stand out in this event are the fact that it is both a sporting challenge for teams and in aid of charity. Each team has to raise at least €1,500 to help in the fight against poverty if they want to take part and complete the 100-km course in less than 32 hours. The route chosen for the last four events was the 'Green Way' in the province of Girona, which starts in Olot and ends in Sant Feliu de Guíxols. The Trailwalker has had an important impact on these two towns, which are both in rural locations, and on the areas it passes through. It has also affected local associations, sport, culture and charitable work, and tourism, hotels and restaurants in particular. For the first time in 2014, a second annual event was also organized in the mountains near Madrid. This article looks to analyse the impact of small sporting events, like this charitable ultra trail with global repercussions, on local rural areas that receive an intense amount of activity in a short period of time, and the cultural, tourism and, as a result, economic effects that stand out.