David Barroso (born 21 August 2001) is a Spanish middle-distance runner. He won the 800 metres at the 2025 Summer World University Games, was a semi-finalist at the 2025 World Athletics Championships and finished fourth in the 2026 European Athletics Championships.
Early life He is from Extremadura. He graduated in Physical Activity and Sport and studied for a Master's Degree in Physical and Sports Performance at the Pablo de Olavide University.
Career He runs as a member of Capex in Zafra. He was Spanish under-20 champion in the 800 metres in 2020 and Spanish under-23 champion over that distance in 2022. That year, he ran a personal best 1:48.47 for the 800m at the Spanish championships.
He set a personal best twice in May 2025; running the 800 metres in 1:45.39 in Castellón and then improving to 1:45.27 in Nerja, in a race in which that he claimed notable victories over his more-storied compatriots Mariano García and Josué Canales. He competed for Spain at the 2025 Summer World University Games in Bochum, Germany, winning the gold medal in the 800 metres in 1:47.64.
He finished fourth at the Spanish Athletics Championships in August 2025 over 800m, one hundredth of-a-second behind Pablo Sánchez-Valladares, but ran a new personal best of 1:43.95 the following week in Fribourg, a time that was better than Sánchez-Valladares' lifetime best which had also set that summer. As a result, he was selected ahead of Sánchez-Valladares for the third spot in the 800 metres for the Spanish team at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. He went on to reach the semi-finalist in Tokyo in the men's 800 metres.
In July 2026, he ran a personal best for the 800 metres of 1:43.83 at the Meeting Stanislas Nancy in France. Later that month he ran another new personal best of 1:43.60 at the Gyulai Istvan Memorial in Budapest. In August, he placed fourth in the 800 metres final at the European Championships in Birmingham, England. Competing in the Diamond League at the 2026 Athletissima in Lausanne, Switzerland on 21 August 2026, he placed seventh in the 800 metres.
International competitions Representing 2022Mediterranean U23 ChampionshipsPescara, Italy 3rd800 m1:47.712023Mediterranean Indoor U23 ChampionshipsValencia, Spain4th800 m 1:52.892025World University GamesBochum, Germany 1st800 m1:47.64World ChampionshipsTokyo, Japan12th (sf)800 m1:44.272026Ibero-American ChampionshipsLima, Peru1st800 m1:46.30European ChampionshipsBirmingham, United Kingdom4th800 m1:45.75Mediterranean GamesTaranto, Italy2nd800 m1:46.35
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