World Athletics Cross-Country Championships

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Athletics

	Type	International
	Location	Worldwide
	Governing Body	World Athletics
	Conducted	Once in 2 years
	Gender	Both

Trivia

The Cross Country World Championships are considered by many to be the most challenging races to win, even more difficult than the Olympics.
In an incredible show of dominance, Kenya or Ethiopia has won the senior men's team race every year since 1981, in both long and short races. These nations have enjoyed similar dominance in junior men's racing since 1982.

The World Cross Country Athletics Championship is the most prominent competition in international cross-country running. In most of the major championships, the best distance runners in the world are divided into a few races, i.e. 3000m Steeplechase, 5000m and 10,000m. However, in the absence of short races, the World Cross Country Championship includes all athletes against each other in a single race. Therefore, the competition is quite fierce.

Formerly held annually and organized by the World Athletics (formerly IAAF), it was started in 1973 when it replaced the International Cross Country Championships. The event was held annually until 2011 when World Athletics turned it into a biennial event.

Significance / Memorable Moments

Traditionally, the World Cross Country Championship consisted of four races: one for men (12 km) and one for women (8 km); and one for junior men (8 km) and for junior women (6 km).
Traditionally, scoring was done for individuals and national teams. In a team competition, the final positions of the top six scorers of a team of up to nine are totaled for men and women, respectively, and the lowest score wins. For junior races, the top three positions of a team of up to four are scored.
The 1998 World Cross Country Championship saw the introduction of two new events, a men's short race and a women's short race. The last time these 4km races were held was in 2006.
At the 206th IAAF Council Meeting that took place after the 2016 Summer Olympics, the council decided to add a mixed-gender relay race to the schedule of the World Cross Country Championship for the first time.

Updated On : 07 Sep, 2020

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