USATF Cross Country Championships looked so dead today.

Bags was runner up

Was going to post this yesterday but decided to keep my mouth shut and see if anyone else had the same thoughts.

Here’s an additional thought: let the BAA take it over and hold it on the World’s xc course. Hotels, flights and running community=guaranteed to be a success.

There were just 4 weeks between the two events. Usually it is 6 or 7 weeks. A little history here, until the early 2000s the national championships were held on the Saturday after Thanksgiving (last weekend of November), and they would have a smaller but more elite US team qualifier in January or early February. The January-February race was never very big. The US nationals would have hundreds of competitors, compared to a few dozen, and it received a lot more attention.

About 20 years ago, USATF created Club Cross country, held on the second Saturday of December, and the US Nationals, which similar to the past is held in January or February. Participation at Club Cross Country is much bigger than the old US Nationals, some years with 2000 or more competitors with 5 or 6 separate races. San Francisco and Bethlehem, which rotate through every 5 to 10 years, often have the most attendance.

US Nationals have varied, but seem like an afterthought. They are held at an odd time of the year. It's soon after the holidays, people are often in a rebuilding phase, the weather can be tough on travelers, and the World XC championships are no longer held every year. So off years are going to have much weaker attendance from both elite and citizen (non-elite) runners.

To improve attendance at US Nationals, USATF should keep the races at locations within an hour or so of major airports (but note that that even Tallahassee is not that easy to get to); offer more prize money (that was down from last year $2500 for winners compared to $4000 last year, and provide incentive for athletes to qualify for something (the Edinburgh xc challenge a few years ago was a great way to get US athletes overseas for some high-level xc); do a better job of marketing for both participants and fans.

To be fair, I believe USATF now identifies xc with 2 yr designation, so this event was 24-25, next year will be 25-26, etc. This is to sync with WA which uses this means. Somebody feel free to correct this if I am wrong.

Results from the 1997 USATF Championships (This is when it was USA Champs / Club team champs and World XC Trials). Look at some of the guys in the top 40). This was a great race and people showed up. This was the complete opposite of what was experienced in Lubbock, TX yesterday.

Dec 7th, 1997 Blue Lake Park, Portland, Oregon

Senior Men - 12,165M (3 x 4k loop)

Top 5 teams - 32 scoring teams

1 27 Nike International

2 72 Adidas

3 75 Team New Balance I

4 156 Team New Balance 2

5 164 Reebok Enclave

Top 10 Individuals - 316 finishers

1 37:31 Tim Hacker Nike (World Champs runner)

2 37:34 Bob Kennedy Nike (Olympian, American record 5000m, 3000m)

3 37:36 Pete Julian Adidas (World Champs runner 10k)

4 37:38 Robert Gary Nike (Olympian steeple)

5 37:47 Rob Cook Team New Balance (steeple)

6 37:48 Adam Goucher Unattached-Boulder (running for CU) (Olympian, College record holder)

7 37:51 Alan Culpepper Adidas (Olympian)

8 37:58 Mark Coogan Team New Balance (Olympian marathon, WC 5000m)

9 38:00 Michael Donnely Team New Balance Coastel

10 38:00 Jerry Lawson Nike (American record -marathon)

Also in top 40

12 38:08 Dan Browne Nike (Olympian 10k, marathon)

13 38:10 Mark Croghan Adidas (Olympian and American record - steeple)

18 38:16 Rod DeHaven Team New Balance (Olympian - marathon)

23 38:25 Ed Eyestone Reebok (Olympian - marathon)

27 38:30 Nick Rogers - Unatt Eugene (Olympian 10k)

32 38:40 Brian Hyde - Team New Balance (College record 1500m and Olympian)

34 38:41 Dan Nelson - Team New Balance (WC Steeple)

37 38:50 Marc Davis - Nike (Olympian steeple and American record 2 mile)

Do you think any USATF employees see these comments and can act on them?

Actually, I have heard that CLUB xc championships will be held in Tallahassee the day after Worlds - so Jan. 11, 2026. There won't be a club xc race in 2025. USATF will have a world "qualifying" event sometime in December, 2025. That December race will not be the club championship. Unfortunately, given that USATF bids the USA championships for two year blocks, the December race is probably going to be in Lubbock again.

Someone at USATF believes that all the club racers will flock to Tallahassee in January and be a big crowd spectating at World's. January is an awkward time to be in peak shape for xc for us regular folks, plus Tallahassee is normally difficult and expensive to get to and likely to be more so with World's participants there.

Kind of sucks - don't want to go to Lubbock in December (or ever, actually) and not inclined to go to Tallahassee yet again either.

Tumbleweed is right about the history. USAs have never been very big, though they were crazy competitive and only in the last 20 years or so did they offer masters races.

USATF created absolutely no excitement and should be dissolved ASAP.

Time to start over with new leadership

Down vote me all you want, lets see how many of these clowns show up Tallahassee.

Prediction: none.

I cringe whenever someone writes "we all know that..."

Yes, I'm sure the whole world agrees with you. What an assumption.

I spent almost two weeks in Eugene at the Olympic Trials last summer and loved the entire experience, including the town of Eugene and all its great bike paths, running trails, parks, brewpubs, restaurants, etc -- not to mention Hayward Field. Thank you for enlightening us that Eugene "is the armpit of the Northwest."

Im trying to recall when/if USATF has ever been serious about creating a liveable wage for "professional" athletes. Regardless of what the history shows over yhe last 20 years, the product is not better. So, where is the money that makes xc, athletics competitive with top athletes in other sports in USA? Not to be compared with standard of living in other countries. There is no way USA cant compete for titles consistently in XC. They just blew the world out of the water in Paris on minimal athlete budget/compensation. I guess thats just good enough mentality. IF you have less than that interest for XC, expect more distant place team finishes for meaningful competitions. It's one thing to have a club championship but thats not the plan that gets your best on the line of World championship meets. Ahhhh it doesnt matter since WA is on a 2 year cycle, right? Well how about doing something a little extra to get our group to move up the line in the years they do have a championship meet? Leadership without a vision needs to be eliminated. It's not leadership. They dont care but they are comfortable in their powerful positions. Like an expensive prostitute. She might be really good at what she does, but shes still a prostitute.

Brother no one cares about cross country unless it’s Hs or college

Yep, they fixed it. Previously the results just said "2024."

Yeah, one of the best things about Club Cross is that the taper usually coincides with Thanksgiving and then the following holidays fall during down time post race. Now people have to fit in peak training around social gatherings and winter weather.

I live close enough to Tallahassee that I'm going to see Worlds, but racing the day after I've been standing around for several hours doesn't seem like a good idea.

No Tinmoms present? They are the creamofthecrop

Cross country in the US is a fall sport. It used to have its climax in mid to late November with NCAA championships and the AAU/TAC championships a week or two later. And there was only one version of the latter. As I recall there were club teams that entered and a club championship was awarded and the meet was mostly the basis for selecting who we were going to send to the World Cross Country Championship every year, and that meet did happen every year.

There were always "big name" runners who skipped that meet but there were also a fair few of those types in the meet. In its hayday the Florida Track Club was almost always there with its big guns. There was actually a bit of coverage in the mainstream sports media now and again. And then USATF went to the current format. I am not certain as to why but I think the idea was to select our team for Worlds closer to when that race took place and I think that for a while the distance was 12 km to match the distance at Worlds. Rather than abandon the 10 km race that was run in our actual cross country season they made it into the club championships.

What actually happened was that the January/Frbruary race became something of a dud. It happens long after most of the handful of people who really pay attention to cross country have moved on to paying attention to indoor track and to some early season road races. The one big draw the race had when we went to the current set up, being a trial for Worlds evrey year, is no longer always a draw as Worlds no longer happens every year. If it was up to me I'd go back to having one national championship. I'd have it in November. I'd mostly use it to select our team for Worlds. It would work even better as a trial today than it did decades ago because the distance at Worlds has been shortened. But it's not up to me.

Speaking of next year worlds, I had to double check to confirm the date. The World XC Champs, usually in March and never later than Feb. (late Feb.?) are January freaking 11? Why? That seems really bizarre, seems like it would be way too early for almost any country but us (?)

Just checked ... mid-late March every year but two, and those times were 18 Feb. and 28 Feb.