Overview

• The Orce town hall has formally submitted Pérez’s candidacy for the 2026 Princess of Asturias Sports Prize, with regional newspaper IDEAL publicly campaigning in support.
• Pérez defended her world titles in both the 20 km and 35 km in Budapest 2023 and Tokyo 2025, becoming the only woman to achieve a back‑to‑back double and bringing her tally to four world crowns.
• She won Olympic medals at the Paris Games, including the mixed relay title alongside Álvaro Martín.
• IDEAL notes a competitive awards field that could include Armand “Mondo” Duplantis and Novak Djokovic, with recent laureates including Serena Williams and Carolina Marín.
• Rising from depopulated Orce, she overcame 2022 disqualifications, a coccyx fracture, pre‑Olympic respiratory illnesses and a divorce, and now plans to pursue individual Olympic gold in the Los Angeles 2028 half marathon before starting a family.