Today, August 15, the fifth Corgi Race Vilnius 2026 will take place at the Vingis Parks stage – the largest in the event’s history. Registration has closed at 150 corgis from nine countries, and for the first time in five years, corgis from the United Kingdom will also be among the participants, JAV and the Czech Republic.

Event will take place on August 15 from 13 to 19 p.m. at the Vingis Parks stage. Tickets can be purchased on the Paysera Tickets platform and on the day of the event.

The record was set before the start

The event will potentially attract 150 participants from Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Estonia, the USA, Germany, Ukraine, the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom. Half of the participants – 75 corgis – will be taking part in the race for the first time. At that time, six veterans – Amigo, Fox, Fox, Madeira, Bulka and Džiugas – have already accumulated all five “Corgi Race” start marks.

Both Pembroke Welsh Corgis and the rarer Cardigan Welsh Corgis will test the course. And the six corgis, who are returning to the race for the fifth time, will receive a special gift from the organizers this year – for their loyalty to the event and its mission to popularize the breed around the world.

Corgi returns to where it all began

One of the most striking news of this year is the first participant in five years from the United Kingdom, the homeland of the corgi breed. A twelve-year-old dog named Duke is coming to Vilnius from Sedbergh in Cumbria. The Pembroke Welsh Corgi was one of Queen Elizabeth II’s favorite breeds: the royal family purchased the first corgi, named Dookie, back in 1933, and in 1944, the female dog Susan, who was given to her, became the progenitor of fourteen generations of royal corgis. And here is an almost incredible coincidence: the first Briton in the Vilnius “Corgi Race” has almost the same name as the first corgi at Buckingham Palace.

Duke was born in Wales on Boxing Day and is coming to Vilnius by car, all the way from England. His owners learned about the event from a Facebook video and decided that a dog who has entered the age of honor deserves a holiday where he would be rewarded for his favorite activity – barking. The owners are not going to guess whether he will win the Loudest Bark competition, but they have one argument: “We don’t know if he will win, but he has definitely trained his whole life for the Loudest Bark competition,” says the corgi’s owner, Ana. The family has never been to Lithuania before.

“The first year we gathered forty corgis from one city. This year – one hundred and fifty from nine countries, and for the first time among them is a participant from where the breed originated. The corgi is one of Britain’s most famous exports, so it is a kind of honor to have guests from the breed’s homeland. Duke is twelve years old, so he will not be running in races – a veteran doesn’t need that. He will compete in the Loudest Bark and Smartest Nose competitions. We call Vilnius the European Corgi Capital, and when people from the breed’s homeland start coming to us, and not the other way around, that title sounds a bit more serious,” says event organizer Edvinas Miškas.

The British accent will also be reinforced by the event’s partners. The British Chamber of Commerce in Lithuania (BCCL) has the status of an official community partner, and the Deputy Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Lithuania will be a member of the event’s costume commission.

Three guests from across the Atlantic

The American Corgi racing scene will be represented in Vilnius this year by three participants.

In June, at Emerald Downs in Washington State, where more than 175 corgis competed, GG (Gustave the Girl Dog) from Seattle won the final for the second year in a row. Mr. Corrington from Palm Springs came in second. The race was broadcast on ESPN2 just a few days ago, and now the two rivals will meet again – only on another continent.

Mr. Corrington’s team even made T-shirts with the Lithuanian flag for their trip to Vilnius. Wearing them, the team tells the US media about their trip to Vilnius.

The third guest from the US is Ziggy, the face of Little Stumps Racing. This corgi has already appeared on fourteen NFL halftime shows and this year moved to Stuttgart with his owner.

Each corgi now has its own EXP

On the occasion of the fifth race, the organizers counted the entire history of the participants for the first time and created an EXP – experience points – system.

It covers the four previous editions of the event – ​​2020, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Points are awarded not only for victories. A Corgi receives 10 points for each year of life, 100 for each event visited and another 100 for each year in which it actually stood at the starting line.

This basis is also supplemented by sporting results: reaching the semi-finals is worth 100 points, the finals – 200, winning third place – 300, second – 400, and first – 500 points. Points can also be earned in the costume parade, solo sprint, Smartest Nose and Loudest Bark competitions. In the Smartest Nose competition, EXP can be collected even for every treat found.

So the system rewards not only the fastest.

The all-time EXP leader is Moka from Druskininkai, with 2,240 points. She accumulated only 1,400 of them on the podium in major races: Moka won the 2023 and 2024 races, and came second in 2025.

In second place is Amigo with 1,580 points. He has not even reached the semi-finals in the main race, but he has been collecting points well elsewhere: in 2024 and 2025. he won the costume parade twice in a row. Each such victory is worth 300 points.

Third is Madeira, with 1,472 points. Her profile is the most diverse: in just eleven years of life, she receives 110 points, and to these she adds the semi-finalist she reached in 2025, second place in the costume parade in 2023, and participation in the solo sprint, the Smartest Nose and the Loudest Bark competitions.

Each registered corgi gets a personal collectible card with its own EXP points. They are designed in the format of popular trading cards – only instead of the usual sports statistics, the most important thing here is how fast you run, how loud you bark, and how well you smell treats.

In 2026, points will be counted after the event.

From the 50-meter sprint to the four-meter Jorgi

This year’s program includes more than one opportunity for corgis to show what they can do:

13:00–15:50 – participant registration13:00–15:30 – “Run-Run”13:00–15:50 – Loudest Bark Competition13:00–17:00 – Smartest Nose Competition13:00-18:00 – Solo Sprint13:00–18:30 – Agility beginner zone16:00–17:00 – Costume parade17:00–19:00 – Corgi racing

The main speed event will take place on a 50-meter track. Up to 14 qualifying runs of 7-8 corgis are planned, two semi-finals and a final, where the six fastest corgis and the winner of the solo sprint will meet.

The Agility Beginner Zone and “Run-Run” are being introduced for the first time this year. And for those who aren’t ready to race yet, there will be plenty of other opportunities to become the star of the day – after all, a corgi doesn’t have to be the fastest to win the audience’s love.

A Paw Patrol zone will be waiting for children, and a four-meter-tall giant corgi, Jorgis, will be standing next to the ice cream truck – about twenty times larger than the average event participant.

Refreshments and refreshments will be available at a mobile cafe, Fish and Chips, and Mexican food vans.

All of this year’s events are presented by the main sponsor of Corgi Race Vilnius 2026 – Club 4 Paws.

“Our concern for pets goes beyond nutrition. We believe that pets deserve not only quality food, but also attention, connection, and meaningful experiences. Such events “How Corgi Race Vilnius brings people and their pets together, strengthens the community, and encourages responsible and joyful companionship between people and their pets. We are proud to support an event that celebrates the special bond between people and their pets,” says Club 4 Paws.

The Corgi Race is more than just a competition. It’s a day when every corgi can discover their talent. Some join the Speed ​​Club, others choose the Fashion Club, and still others join the Best Nose or Loudest Bark Club.

Because not every corgi was born to be a sprinter. Some were born to be famous.

The event that the world was talking about

In 2025, the Corgi Race was covered by over 3,200 publications in 40 countries, with a potential audience of around 2,8 billion people. The event was covered by the Associated Press, Reuters, ABC News, Sky News, ZDF, France 24, People and other international media outlets.

According to data from reputation analytics company Repsense, the 2025 Corgi Racing Day was the most positive day of the year for Lithuania on global social media.

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