The Catholic University of Murcia (UCAM) is taking part in the Madrid Spring Festival, the Chinese New Year festival held at Madrid Río, and is sponsoring the Comunidad de Madrid Spring Race 2026 – Year of the Horse, which will take place on Sunday as part of the celebrations. Throughout the weekend, the University has an active presence at the Puente del Rey esplanade, with a marquee hosting a range of activities for athletes, families and the general public.

In addition, UCAM has organised a visit for 20 of its Chinese students so they could celebrate this traditional date with the community and festival attendees. Rhu Pan, an exchange student in Pharmacy, noted that UCAM “helps you a lot if you are an international student, to integrate into activities like this, and encourages students to take part.”

Olympic athletes Ayoub Ghadfa, David Cal and Paco Cubelos also joined the event. Cubelos stressed that “as it couldn’t be otherwise, our University had to be here. UCAM always tries to be present in everything related to sport.”

UCAM maintains a well-established relationship with China: more than 650 students from the Asian country have enrolled at the University since 2016. In addition, UCAM has had a commercial representative in China since 2012 and opened its first office in Beijing in 2014. In this regard, the University President, María Dolores García, explained that “we have an office in Beijing and agreements with several universities such as Shandong.” She also highlighted how interesting it is to bring culture and sport together at an event like this. The festival’s organiser, Javier Martínez, pointed out that “we live in a global world and it is essential that each of us gets to know a little more about other people’s cultures.”

At the information stand, UCAM also offered an interactive proposal for visitors, who were able to enjoy a photo booth set up by the University. In addition, those who visited the marquee—open on Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 to 20:00—took part in strength and physical performance tests, creating a space for interaction between students, runners and visitors. The marquee also provides information on the academic programmes of UCAM’s new Madrid Campus, with pre-enrolment now open for the 2026/2027 academic year.

The Spring Race

UCAM will provide 6,000 runner goody bags and distribute official event T-shirts. The race will take place on 1 March from 9:00, starting and finishing at Puente del Rey and passing through Casa de Campo on the longer distances. The event forms part of UCAM’s commitment to sport and its international profile.