USA Cross Country Championships explained

Bgcolour:	BEF781
Date:	Mid-February
Location:	United States
Type:	Cross country running
Distance:	10 km for men 10 km for women 8 km for junior men 6 km for junior women
Est:	1890
Homepage:	USA Cross Country Championships

The USA Cross Country Championships is the annual national championships for cross country running in the United States. The championships is generally held in mid-February and it serves as a way of designating the country's national champion, as well as acting as the selection race for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.^[1]

The competition, currently run under the auspices of USA Track & Field, traces its history back to 1883. The competition was held sporadically until 1905 at which point it has been held every year since.^[2] The National Championship has been sponsored by multiple organizations over the years, some of them holding competing championships. It has thus been known under a variety of names.

Women did not have a championship until 1964. Until 1979, women's championships were segregated from the men, on the same date in a different location.

Currently there are two major Cross Country Championship events, generally referred to as the "Fall Championships" and the "Winter Championships." The Fall Championships generally happen in late November or early December, which corresponds with the end of the broader cross country season from late-August into November. Since 1998, those have been known as the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships. The Winter Championships generally happen in late January or early February and since they are three months after the broader season, are geared towards selecting the international team for the World Championships which is generally held in late March. Since 2011, the World Championships are only held in odd numbered years but USA continues to hold Winter Championships every year.

There are currently several races held at the Fall Championships, the number of races depends on the number of entries. In addition to the open races for each gender, there are masters championships in each age division. Open and masters men run 10K up to age 60. 60 and above run 8K races. All women's divisions run 6K, but masters run at least one separate race. When there are a large number of entries, even the one division can be broken into an A section and a B section to make the number of runners on the course manageable.^[3]

There are currently four races held at each Winter Championships: the men's 12 km open race, the women's 8 km open race, a junior men's race of 8 km and a junior women's race of 6 km.^[1] All four serve as selection races for the IAAF World Championships in which the top six runners from each race gain qualification.^[4] Each race awards medals on an individual basis and a team basis (where the performances by athletes belonging to a certain running club or sponsor are combined).^[1] Between 1998 and 2006 the championships featured short course races of 4 km for both men and women – these races are now discontinued. Occasionally, masters races, determined by age group, are held as part of the championships.^[5]

Lynn Jennings won the championship nine times between 1985 and 1996, when there was only the one championship for women. She is the only competitor to have won the USA Cross Country Championships and IAAF World Championships in the same year, having done so three times consecutively in 1990, 1991 and 1992. Prior to the existence of the World Championships, Doris Brown pulled the same feat four times, three consecutively with the "International Championships" in 1967, 1969, 1970 and 1971. While Brown also won the 1968 International Championship, part of five in a row, she lost the November 1967 US Championship to Vicki Foltz. Pat Porter won eleven of the various men's championships over a seven-year period of time between 1982 and 1989, including eight Fall Championships in a row. In the 1930s, Don Lash won seven in a row (1934-1940).

One set of brothers; Bill Ashenfelter and Horace Ashenfelter have won championships. Two sets of spouses have won championships; Cathy Branta (Easker) (1984) and John Easker (1986); Shayne Culpepper and Alan Culpepper. The Culpeppers did it on the same day, February 16, 2003.

The competition has been televised in the past on ESPN2.^[5]

History

The first events claiming the National Championship moniker were the "Amateur Individual Cross Country Championship of America" hosted by the New York Athletic Club (NYAC) in Mott Haven, Bronx starting in 1883. In 1887, the National Cross Country Association (NCCA) began holding championships. Both organizations held championships in 1887. Coincidentally, both were won by Edward C. Carter. NCCA held their last championship in 1892 at the Morris Park Racecourse. NYAC revived the series in 1897 also at Morris Park. The Knickerbocker Athletic Club hosted in the same location in April 1898 but in November of the same year, the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) held their first such event "The Cross-Country Individual and Team Championship of the A.A.U." AAU's second championship wasn't until 1903 but in between, the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York hosted a race regarded as a national championship. AAU's third race was in 1905, called the “National Cross Country Championship of the A.A.U.” and the championship has been held continuously since, under that name until the demise of the AAU as the national governing body in 1979. The championship for some seasons has fallen on opposite sides of the new year occasionally. The first race in Van Cortlandt Park was held in 1912, that venue has been a frequent host of the championship ever since, 25 times, even as recently as 2006. The first championship not held in the state of New York was 1917, when it was held in Franklin Park in Boston. To date, a championship has been held in 31 different states.

In 1962, the U.S. Track & Field Federation (USTFF) began holding a competing “National Cross Country Championship of the U.S.T.F.F.” in the same week as the AAU. Most were in different venues, but the two 1964 championships were both held in Washington Park, Chicago two days apart. The same situation happened in 1968 at Van Cortlandt Park. In 1969, Jack Bacheler won both championships, USTFF at Penn State on November 26 and AAU at Bloomfield Hills, Michigan on November 29. The following year, his teammate Frank Shorter accomplished the same feat. Craig Virgin technically duplicated it in 1977, after winning USTFF, he finished second to British athlete Nick Rose at the AAU. By being the first American citizen to cross the finish line, Virgin was the AAU National Champion that year. Starting in 1975, the AAU added the “World Cross Country Championship Senior Men's Trials” in February at a more appropriate time to select an international team to the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. In 1979 the USTFF renamed itself Track and Field Association, USA using the acronym USTFA for two years. There is no evidence USTFF or USTFA ever held a championship for women.

As the new national governing body, The Athletics Congress (TAC) began administering the “National Cross Country Championship of T.A.C.” a month later. TAC changed its name to USATF in 1993, first holding "The U.S.A.T.F. National Cross Country Championship."^[6]

A Women's national championship was added in 1964. The women's championship was held at a separate location on the same date until 1979. In the last season of the AAU administration it was finally combined to the same location and date as the men.

In 1998, the IAAF World Cross Country Championships began long course and short course championships, USATF commensurately held long and short course championships as qualifiers. 1998 was the first year women joined the men in holding a separate qualifier, at the same unified location. Prior to that, the women qualified to the World Championships based on their Championship about three months earlier. That same year, the Fall Championships were renamed the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships, with the USATF website redirecting the lineage of National Championship history to the February event..

While the championship has predominantly been held in the last two weeks of November, aligning with the close of the traditional fall season on the scholastic level, it has occurred in eight different months around the year. In 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2003, the Fall Championship locations and dates were chosen to correspond with the location of the USATF Annual Meeting.

International qualifier

While the International Cross Country Championships existed back to 1898 for men and 1931 for women, the United States did not send representatives to participate until 1966 (when Tracy Smith brought home a bronze medal) for men and 1967 for women (after the women's event had not been held for 10 years). Those representatives were selected from the National Championship race. Doris Brown won the 1967 Championship and the next four championships after that. By 1970, USA hosted the 1970 International Cross Country Championships for women in Frederick, Maryland but the event was segregated from the men's championship in Vichy, France the following day, though there was a women's race also held in Vichy resulting in two champions that year, one of them Brown.

In 1973, the International Championships gave way to the new IAAF World Cross Country Championships. In 1973, US men did not participate but US women won the team bronze medal. US men again did not participate in the 1974 World Championships, though the US Junior Men did participate and won the team gold medal behind Rich Kimball's individual win over future Olympic medalist John Treacy. US men decided to take the World Championships seriously in 1975, holding a separate qualifying event in February. US women did not hold a separate qualifying race, then combined with the men, until 1998.

Editions

Men only race

Key:

Season	Venue	Location	Winner	Time	Distance	Date
1883
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	Thomas Delaney	26:30	4.25 miles	November 6, 1883
1884
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	D.D. McTaggart	29:53	≈ 5 miles	November 4, 1884
1885
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	29:07	≈ 4.5 miles	November 5, 1885
1886
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	31:51	5 miles	November 2, 1886
1887
	Highbridge Park	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	56:44	8 miles	April 30, 1887
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	34:52	5 miles	November 8, 1887
1888
	Fleetwood Driving Park	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	41:35	≈ 8 miles	April 28, 1888
1889
	Mott Haven	New York City, New York	Willie Day	45:31	≈ 8 miles	May 4, 1889
1890
	Morris Park	New York City, New York	Willie Day	47:41	8 miles	April 26, 1890
1891
	Morris Park	New York City, New York	M. Kennedy	46:30	8 miles	April 25, 1891
1892
	Morris Park	New York City, New York	Edward Carter	43:54	8 miles	April 30, 1892
1893-6			Not held
1897
	Morris Park	New York City, New York	George Orton F.J. Hjertberg	35:58 36:25	6.25 miles	April 3, 1897
1898
	Morris Park	New York City, New York	George Orton J.F. Malloy	35:41 36:24	6.25 miles	April 2, 1898
	Morris Park	New York City, New York		38:33	6.5 miles	November 26, 1898
1899-1900			Not held
1901
	Pan-American Exposition	Buffalo, New York	Jerry Pierce	43:27	8miles	September 7, 1901
1902			Not held
1903	Travers Island	New York City, New York	John J. Joyce	32:23	≈ 6 miles	November 3, 1903
1904			Not held
1905	Travers Island	New York City, New York	W.J. Hail	32:59	6 miles	November 30, 1905
1906	Travers Island	New York City, New York	Frank Nebrich	34:29	6 miles	December 15, 1906
1907	Celtic Park	New York City, New York	Frank Bellars	33:12	6.25 miles	November 23, 1907
1908	Celtic Park	New York City, New York	Frank Bellars	34:15	6.25 miles	November 14, 1908
1909	Celtic Park	New York City, New York	Willie Kramer	31:17	6.5 miles	November 20. 1909
1910	Celtic Park	New York City, New York	Frank Bellars	33:03	≈ 6 miles	November 26, 1910
1911	Celtic Park	New York City, New York	Willie Kramer	37:08	6.25 miles	November 18, 1911
1912	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Willie Kramer	34:32	6 miles	November 30, 1912
1913	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Abel Kiviat	33:52	6 miles	December 6, 1913
1914	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Hannes Kolehmainen Arthur J. Fogel	33:36 33:49	6.12 miles	December 12, 1914
1915	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Nick Giannakopoulos	32:46	6 miles	January 8, 1916
1916	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Ville Kyrönen (3)John W. Overton	32:46 33:33	6 miles	December 9, 1916
1917	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	James Henigan	33:58	≈ 6 miles	November 24, 1917
1918	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Max Bohland	33:00	6 miles	November 30, 1918
1919	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Fred Faller	32:26	6 miles	November 29, 1919
1920	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Fred Faller	29:01	5.5 miles	November 20, 1920
1921	Schenley Park	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	R. Earl Johnson	24:23	5 miles	November 19, 1921
1922	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Ville Ritola R. Earl Johnson	34:37 35:41	6.5 miles	November 25, 1922
1923	Fairmount Park	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania		31:56	6.25 miles	November 24, 1923
1924	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Fred Wachsmuth	31:35	6 miles	November 29, 1924
1925	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Ville Ritola Fred Wachsmuth	29:27	6.25 miles	November 21, 1925
1926	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York		30:02	6.25 miles	November 21, 1926
1927	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York		29:27	6 miles	November 26, 1927
1928	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Gus Moore	31:18	6 miles	November 18, 1928
1929	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Gus Moore	31:10	6 miles	December 8, 1928
1930	Lincoln Park	Jersey City, New Jersey	William Zepp	29:43	6 miles	November 30, 1930
1931	Eastern Michigan University	Ypsilanti, Michigan	Clark Chamberlain	29:40	6 miles	November 28, 1931
1932	Kenwood Country Club	Cincinnati, Ohio	Joseph McCluskey	32:36	6 miles	December 3, 1932
1933	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Ray Sears	32:51	10K	October 28, 1933
1934	Finkbine Field	Iowa City, Iowa	Don Lash	32:17	10K	November 29, 1934
1935	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Don Lash	32:42	10K	November 23, 1935
1936	Branch Brook Park	Newark, New Jersey	Don Lash	32:37	10K	November 29, 1936
1937	Branch Brook Park	Newark, New Jersey	Don Lash	32:57	10K	November 28, 1937
1938	Branch Brook Park	Newark, New Jersey	Don Lash	34:33	10K	November 27, 1938
1939	Branch Brook Park	Newark, New Jersey	Don Lash	32:26	10K	November 20, 1939
1940	Meadowbrook Country Club	Northville, Michigan	Don Lash	30:25	10K	November 28, 1940
1941	Empire City Race Track	Yonkers, New York	Greg Rice	29:19	10K	November 9, 1941
1942	Weequahic Park	Newark, New Jersey	Frank Dixon	32:52	10K	November 29, 1942
1943	Clifton Park	Baltimore, Maryland	William Hulse	32:41	10K	November 25, 1943
1944	Clifton Park	Baltimore, Maryland	James Rafferty	31:38	10K	November 23, 1944
1945	Delaware Park	Buffalo, New York	Thomas Quinn	34:14	10K	November 25, 1945
1946	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Robert Black	32:46	10K	November 30, 1946
1947	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Curt Stone	32:28	10K	November 29, 1947
1948	Warren Valley Course	Detroit, Michigan	Robert Black	30:00	10K	November 27, 1948
1949	Warren Valley Course	Detroit, Michigan	Fred Wilt	30:31	10K	December 3, 1949
1950	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Browning Ross	31:24	6 miles	November 25, 1950
1951	Fairmount Park	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Bill Ashenfelter	30:26	10K	December 16, 1951
1952	Delaware Park	Buffalo, New York	Fred Wilt	32:31	10K	November 30, 1952
1953	Delaware Park	Buffalo, New York	Fred Wilt	31:17	10K	November 29, 1953
1954	Fairmount Park	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Gordon McKenzie	29:27	10K	November 29, 1954
1955	Delaware Park	Buffalo, New York	Horace Ashenfelter	31:39	10K	November 20, 1955
1956	Fairmount Park	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Horace Ashenfelter	30:08	10K	December 9, 1956
1957	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	John Macy	31:12	10K	December 7, 1957
1958	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	John Macy	29:47	10K	December 6, 1958
1959	Bellarmine College	Louisville, Kentucky	Al Lawrence John Macy	32:22.4 32:27	6.75 miles	November 26, 1959
1960	Bellarmine College	Louisville, Kentucky	Al Lawrence (3) John Gutknecht	31:20.8 31:41	10K	November 24, 1960
1961	Bellarmine College	Louisville, Kentucky	Bruce Kidd John Gutknecht	32:02.6 32:08	10K	November 23, 1961
Rowspan=3	1962
Ohio State Golf Course	Columbus, Ohio	Leslie Hegedus	31:58	10K	November 22, 1962
Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Pete McArdle	29:53	6.18 miles	November 24, 1962
Rowspan=3	1963
Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Tom O'Hara	30:12	10K	November 28, 1963
Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Bruce Kidd Pete McArdle	30:47	10K	November 30, 1963

Split gender divisions

Season	Venue	Location	Winner	Time	Distance	Date
1964
	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Dan Shaughnessy	30:57	10K	November 26, 1964
	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Dave Ellis William Morgan	30:49 31:10	10K	November 28, 1964
		Seattle, Washington	Marie Mulder	6:51	2K	November 28, 1964
1965
	Echo Hills Golf Course	Wichita, Kansas	John Lawson	28:50	6 miles	November 25, 1965
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Ron Larrieu	31:11	10K	November 27, 1965
		Cambridge, Massachusetts	Sandra Knott	9:06	1.5 miles	November 27, 1965
1966
	Echo Hills Golf Course	Wichita, Kansas	Tarry Harrison	29:57	6 miles	November 24, 1966
	Pierce College	Woodland Hills, California	Ron Larrieu	31:23	10K	November 26, 1966
			Doris Brown
1967
	Fort Collins Country Club	Colorado Springs, Colorado	Arjan Gelling	31:58	10K	November 25, 1967
	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Ken Moore	30:08	10K	November 25, 1967
			Vicki Foltz
1968
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Tarry Harrison	30:05	10K	November 28, 1968
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	John Mason	30:34	10K	November 30, 1968
			Doris Brown
1968
	Penn State University	University Park, Pennsylvania	Jack Bacheler	29:35	6 miles	November 26, 1969
		Bloomfield Hills, Michigan	Jack Bacheler	30:49	10K	November 29, 1969
			Doris Brown
1970
	Penn State University	University Park, Pennsylvania	Frank Shorter	29:01	6 miles	November 25, 1970
	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Frank Shorter	30:15	10K	November 28, 1970
		Saint Louis, Missouri	Doris Brown	10:39	2 miles	November 28, 1970
1971
	Stone Mountain Golf Course	Stone Mountain, Georgia	Edward Leddy	29:56	6 miles	November 24, 1971
	UC San Diego	La Jolla, California	Frank Shorter	29:19	10K	November 27, 1971
		Wickliffe, Ohio	Doris Brown	14:29.4	4K	November 27, 1971
1972
	North Texas State	Denton, Texas	John Halberstadt	29:01	6 miles	November 22, 1972
	Washington Park	Chicago, Illinois	Frank Shorter	30:42	10K	November 25, 1972
	El Dorado Regional Park	Long Beach, California	Francie Larrieu	13:27	4K	November 25, 1972
1973
	Balboa Park	San Diego, California	Ed Mendoza	29:39	6 miles	November 24, 1973
	University of Florida	Gainesville, Florida	Frank Shorter	29:52	10K	November 24, 1973
		Albuquerque, New Mexico	Francie Larrieu	17:17	3 miles	November 24, 1973
1974
	University of Michigan	Ann Arbor, Michigan	Pat Mandera	29:39	6 miles	November 27, 1974
	Crystal Springs	Belmont, California	John Ngeno (3) Ted Castaneda	29:58.8 30:22.9	10K	November 30, 1974
		Bellbrook, Ohio	Lynn Bjorklund	17:31	3 miles	November 30, 1974
	University of Florida	Gainesville, Florida	Frank Shorter	46:32	15K	February 9, 1975
1975
	Coonskin Park	Charleston, West Virginia	Alex Kasich	32:04	6 miles	November 29, 1975
	Eisenhower Golf Club	Annapolis, Maryland	Greg Fredericks	28:57	10K	November 30, 1975
	Crystal Springs	Belmont, California	Lynn Bjorklund	16:32.6	3 miles	November 29, 1975
	Crystal Springs	Belmont, California	Gary Tuttle	37:24	12K	January 31, 1976
1976
	Yahara Hills	Madison, Wisconsin	Mike Slack	29:41	6 miles	October 23, 1976
	Fairmount Park	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Ric Rojas	30:23	10K	November 27, 1976
		Miami, Florida	Jan Merrill	16:37	3 miles	November 27, 1976
	Alameda Municipal Golf Course	Alameda, California	Mike Bordell	42:47	9 miles	February 19, 1977
1977
	Yahara Hills	Madison, Wisconsin	Craig Virgin	28:31	6 miles	October 22, 1977
	Buffalo Bayou Park	Houston, Texas	Nick Rose Craig Virgin	30:14.3 30:22	10K	November 26, 1977
		San Bernardino, California	Jan Merrill	16:55	5K	November 26, 1977
		Atlanta, Georgia	Dan Dillon	42:47	12K	January 28, 1978
1978
	Yahara Hills	Madison, Wisconsin	Craig Virgin	28:42	6 miles	October 21, 1978
	West Seattle Golf Course	Seattle, Washington	Greg Meyer	29:35	10K	November 25, 1978
		Memphis, Tennessee	Julie Brown	16:32	5K	November 25, 1978
		Atlanta, Georgia	Marc Hunter	36:27	12K	February 10, 1979

Combined gender divisions

Season	Venue	Location	Winner	Time	Distance	Date
1979
	Wayne E. Dannehl Course University of Wisconsin, Parkside	Kenosha, Wisconsin	Herb Lindsay	24:12	5 miles	October 20, 1979
	North Carolina State	Raleigh, North Carolina	Alberto Salazar	30:27	10K	November 24, 1979
	North Carolina State	Raleigh, North Carolina	Margaret Groos	16:53.9	5K	November 24, 1979
	Lane Community College	Eugene, Oregon	Craig Virgin	36:43	12K	January 19, 1980
1980
	University of Nevada, Reno	Reno, Nevada	Jairo Correa	31:56	10K	October 25, 1980
	Idaho State University	Pocatello, Idaho	Jon Sinclair	31:46	10K	November 29, 1980
	Idaho State University	Pocatello, Idaho	Mary Shea	18:18.7	5K	November 29, 1980
	E. P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park	Louisville, Kentucky	Craig Virgin	36:09	12K	January 19, 1981
1981
	DeBell Golf Course	Burbank, California	Adrian Royle Alberto Salazar	27:20 27:22	10K*^[7] ^[8]	November 28, 1981
	DeBell Golf Course	Burbank, California	Julie Brown	15:49	5K	November 28, 1981
	Idaho State University	Pocatello, Idaho	Alberto Salazar	36:09	12K	February 15, 1982
1982
	Meadowlands Racetrack	East Rutherford, New Jersey	Pat Porter	28:50	10K	November 28, 1982
	Meadowlands Racetrack	East Rutherford, New Jersey	Leslie Welch	15:52	5K	November 28, 1982
	Southern Illinois University	Edwardsville, Illinois	Alberto Salazar	36:34	12K	February 20, 1983
1983
	Penn State Blue Golf Course	State College, Pennsylvania	Pat Porter	29:18	10K	November 26, 1983
	Penn State Blue Golf Course	State College, Pennsylvania	Betty Jo Geiger	16:31	5K	November 26, 1983
	Meadowlands Racetrack	East Rutherford, New Jersey	Pat Porter	34:47	12K	February 19, 1984
1984
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Pat Porter	28:06	10K	November 24, 1984
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Cathy Branta	15:19	5K	November 24, 1984
	Cottonwood Creek Golf Course	Waco, Texas	Ed Eyestone	36:09	12K	February 16, 1985
1985
	Meredith College	Raleigh, North Carolina	Pat Porter	30:33	10K	November 30, 1985
	Meredith College	Raleigh, North Carolina	Lynn Jennings	17:28	5K	November 30, 1985
	Cottonwood Creek Golf Course	Waco, Texas	Pat Porter	35:07	12K	February 15, 1986
1986
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Pat Porter	30:36	10K	November 29, 1986
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Leslie Welch	16:51	5.2K	November 29, 1986
	Trinity Park	Dallas, Texas	John Easker	36:54	12K	February 14, 1987
1987
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Pat Porter	29:58	10K	November 28, 1987
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Lynn Jennings	19:35	6K	November 28, 1987
	Trinity Park	Dallas, Texas	George Nicolas	38:13	12K	February 13, 1988
1988
	Meredith College	Raleigh, North Carolina	Pat Porter	31:07	10K	November 26, 1988
	Meredith College	Raleigh, North Carolina	Lynn Jennings	19:32	6K	November 26, 1988
	Tyee Valley Golf Course	SeaTac, Washington	Pat Porter	37:54	12K	February 4, 1989
1989
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Pat Porter	32:08	10K	November 25, 1989
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Lynn Jennings	21:11	6K	November 25, 1989
	Tyee Valley Golf Course	SeaTac, Washington	Ed Eyestone	33:39	12K	February 10, 1990
1990
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Bob Kempainen	30:23	10K	November 25, 1990
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Lynn Jennings	19:07	6K	November 25, 1990
	Florida State University	Tallahassee, Florida	Aaron Ramirez	34:48	12K	February 2, 1991
1991
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Todd Williams	29:18	10K	November 30, 1991
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Lynn Jennings	19:24	6K	November 30, 1991
	Plough Park	Memphis, Tennessee	Shannon Butler	35:46	12K	February 8, 1992
1992
	Wayne E. Dannehl Course University of Wisconsin, Parkside	Kenosha, Wisconsin	Bob Kennedy	29:41	10K	November 28, 1992
	Wayne E. Dannehl Course University of Wisconsin, Parkside	Kenosha, Wisconsin	Lynn Jennings	20:26	6K	November 28, 1992
	Sandy High School	Sandy, Oregon	Todd Williams	36:45	12K	February 6, 1993

USATF era

Key:

Season	Venue	Location	Winner	Time	Distance	Date
1993
	University of Montana	Missoula, Montana	Todd Williams	26:55	10K	November 27, 1993
	University of Montana	Missoula, Montana	Lynn Jennings	20:18	6K	November 27, 1993
	Plough Park	Memphis, Tennessee	Bob Kennedy	36:25	12K	February 5, 1994
1994
	Blue Lake Regional Park	Portland, Oregon	Reuben Reina	30:00	10K	December 4, 1994
	Blue Lake Regional Park	Portland, Oregon	Olga Appell	18:15	5.9K	December 4, 1994
1995
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Brad Schlapak	28.41	9.9K	December 3, 1995
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Joan Nesbit	19:05	6K	December 3, 1995
1996
	Stanford Golf Course	Palo Alto, California	Reuben Reina	29:06	10K	December 7, 1996
	Stanford Golf Course	Palo Alto, California	Lynn Jennings	21:06	6.5K	December 7, 1996
1997
	Blue Lake Regional Park	Portland, Oregon	Tim Hacker	27:31	10K	December 7, 1997
	Blue Lake Regional Park	Portland, Oregon	Deena Drossin	26:35	8K	December 7, 1997
	ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex	Lake Buena Vista, Florida	Dan Browne	11:08	4K	January 31, 1998
	ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex	Lake Buena Vista, Florida	Amy Rudolph	12:38^[9]	4K	January 31, 1998
	ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex	Lake Buena Vista, Florida	Nnenna Lynch	26:45^[10]	8K	January 31, 1998
1998
	ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex	Lake Buena Vista, Florida	Andre Williams	28:59	10K	December 6, 1998
	ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex	Lake Buena Vista, Florida	Blake Phillips-Russell	20:06	6K	December 6, 1998
	Lake Spanaway Golf Course	Tacoma, Washington	Adam Goucher	10:29	4K	February 13, 1999
	Lake Spanaway Golf Course	Tacoma, Washington	Deena Drossin	25:15^[11]	8K	February 13, 1999
	Lake Spanaway Golf Course	Tacoma, Washington	Alan Culpepper	34:24	12K	February 14, 1999
	Lake Spanaway Golf Course	Tacoma, Washington	Amy Rudolph	11:59	4K	February 14, 1999
1999
	El Dorado Regional Park	Long Beach, California	Ray Appenheimer	28:59	10K	December 5, 1999
	El Dorado Regional Park	Long Beach, California	Collette Liss^[12]	20:28	6K	December 5, 1999
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Adam Goucher	11:56	4K	February 12, 2000
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Deena Drossin	27:48	8K	February 12, 2000
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Adam Goucher	37:17	12K	February 13, 2000
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Deena Drossin	13:30^[13]	4K	February 13, 2000
2000
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Matt Downin	29:01	10K	November 25, 2000
	Franklin Park	Boston, Massachusetts	Kim Fitchen ^[14]	20:04	6K	November 25, 2000
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Tim Broe	11:32	4K	February 17, 2001
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Deena Drossin	26:14	8K	February 17, 2001
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Meb Keflezighi	34:54	12K	February 18, 2001
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Regina Jacobs	12:37	4K	February 18, 2001
2001
	Battleship Memorial Park	Mobile, Alabama	Jared Cordes	30:39	10K	December 1, 2001
	Battleship Memorial Park	Mobile, Alabama	Priscilla Hein^[15]	20:21	6K	December 1, 2001
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Tim Broe	11:58	4K	February 9, 2002
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Deena Drossin	26:31	8K	February 9, 2002
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Meb Keflezighi	35:45	12K	February 10, 2002
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Regina Jacobs	12:55	4K	February 10, 2002
2002
	Sierra College Course	Rocklin, California	Jared Cordes	31:26	10K	December 14, 2002
	Sierra College Course	Rocklin, California	Shayne Culpepper^[16]	21:47	6K	December 14, 2002
	Buffalo Bayou Park	Houston, Texas	Robert Gary	13:53	4K	February 15, 2003
	Buffalo Bayou Park	Houston, Texas	Deena Drossin	29:06	8K	February 15, 2003
	Buffalo Bayou Park	Houston, Texas	Alan Culpepper	38:22	12K	February 16, 2003
	Buffalo Bayou Park	Houston, Texas	Shayne Culpepper	15:10	4K	February 16, 2003
2003
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Alan Webb	30:13	10K	December 7, 2003
	Bryan Park	Greensboro, North Carolina	Melissa Buttry^[17]	19:59.9	6K	December 7, 2003
	Fall Creek and 16th Street Park	Indianapolis, Indiana	Charlie Gruber	11:14	4K	February 7, 2004
	Fall Creek and 16th Street Park	Indianapolis, Indiana	Colleen De Reuck	26:16	8K	February 7, 2004
	Fall Creek and 16th Street Park	Indianapolis, Indiana	Bob Kennedy	35:03	12K	February 8, 2004
	Fall Creek and 16th Street Park	Indianapolis, Indiana	Shalane Flanagan	12:26	4K	February 8, 2004
2004
	Portland Meadows	Portland, Oregon	Jorge Torres	32:43.91^[18]	10K	December 5, 2004
	Portland Meadows	Portland, Oregon	Melissa Buttry	23:07.85	6K	December 5, 2004
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Tim Broe	11:37.8	4K	February 12, 2005
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Colleen De Reuck	27:24	8K	February 12, 2005
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Dathan Ritzenhein	36:59.9	12K	February 13, 2005
	Fort Vancouver National Historic Site	Vancouver, Washington	Shalane Flanagan	13:24.3	4K	February 13, 2005
2005
	Genesee Valley Park	Rochester, New York	Matt Tegenkamp	29:49	10K	November 19, 2005
	Genesee Valley Park	Rochester, New York	Elizabeth Woodworth^[19]	20:29	6K	November 19, 2005
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Adam Goucher	10:50	3.9K	February 18, 2006
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Blake Phillips-Russell	26:47	7.9K	February 18, 2006
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Ryan Hall	34:38	11.9K	February 19, 2006
	Van Cortlandt Park	New York City, New York	Carrie Tollefson	12:32	3.9K	February 19, 2006
2006
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Matt Downin	30:13	10K	December 9, 2006
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Amy Rudolph^[20]	19:59	6K	December 9, 2006
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Deena Drossin	26:47	8K	February 10, 2007
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Alan Culpepper	37:09	12K	February 10, 2007
2007
	Voice of America Park	West Chester, Ohio	Ryan Warrenburg^[21]	31:46.9	10K	December 8, 2007
	Voice of America Park	West Chester, Ohio	Delilah DiCrescenzo^[22]	20:30.7	6K	December 8, 2007
	Mission Bay	San Diego, California	Shalane Flanagan	25:26	8K	February 16, 2008
	Mission Bay	San Diego, California	Dathan Ritzenhein	35:03	12K	February 16, 2008
2008
	Plantes Ferry Recreation Park	Spokane, Washington	Scott Bauhs	30:47	10K	December 13, 2008
	Plantes Ferry Recreation Park	Spokane, Washington	Rebecca Donaghue^[23]	19:59	6K	December 13, 2008
	Agricultural History Farm Park	Derwood, Maryland	Emily Brown	26:58	8K	February 7, 2009
	Agricultural History Farm Park	Derwood, Maryland	Meb Keflezighi	36:06	12K	February 7, 2009
2009
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky	David Jankowski	29:18	10K	December 9, 2009
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky	Serena Burla^[24]	20:23	6K	December 9, 2009
	Plantes Ferry Recreation Park	Spokane, Washington	Shalane Flanagan	26:47	8K	February 13, 2010
	Plantes Ferry Recreation Park	Spokane, Washington	Dathan Ritzenhein	34:34	12K	February 13, 2010
2010
	McAlpine Park	Charlotte, North Carolina	Aaron Braun	29:35.3	10K	December 11, 2010
	McAlpine Park	Charlotte, North Carolina	Renee Metivier Baillie^[25]	19:50.5	6K	December 11, 2010
	Mission Bay	San Diego, California	Shalane Flanagan	25:47	8K	February 5, 2011
	Mission Bay	San Diego, California	Brent Vaughn	35:46	12K	February 5, 2011
2011
	Jefferson Park Golf Course	Seattle, Washington	Jonathan Grey	29:38	10K	December 10, 2011
	Jefferson Park Golf Course	Seattle, Washington	Brie Felnagle^[26]	19:54	6K	December 10, 2011
	Forest Park	St. Louis, Missouri	Sara Hall	26:50.1	8K	February 11, 2012
	Forest Park	St. Louis, Missouri	Bobby Mack	35:41.4	12K	February 11, 2012
2012
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky	Jacob Riley	29:58	10K	December 8, 2012
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky	Mattie Suver^[27]	20:01	6K	December 8, 2012
	Forest Park	St. Louis, Missouri	Shalane Flanagan	25:49.0	8K	February 8, 2013
	Forest Park	St. Louis, Missouri	Chris Derrick	35:38.6	12K	February 8, 2013
2013
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Joseph Gray^[28]	31:05	10K	December 14, 2013
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Laura Thweatt^[29]	21:43	6K	December 14, 2013
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Amy VanAlstine	27:35	8K	February 15, 2014
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Chris Derrick	36:14	12K	February 15, 2014
2014
	Lehigh Goodman Campus Course	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	Ryan Hill^[30]	29:07.03	10K	December 13, 2014
	Lehigh Goodman Campus Course	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	Laura Thweatt^[31]	19:15	6K	December 13, 2014
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Laura Thweatt	27:42	8K	February 7, 2015
	Flatirons Golf Course	Boulder, Colorado	Chris Derrick	36:18	12K	February 7, 2015
2015
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Garrett Heath^[32]	29:06	10K	December 12, 2015
	Golden Gate Park Polo Fields	San Francisco, California	Amy Van Alstine^[33]	19:51	6K	December 12, 2015
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Mattie Suver	36:38	10K	February 6, 2016
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Craig Lutz	31:40	10K	February 6, 2016
2016
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Samuel Chelanga^[34]	28:55	10K	December 10, 2016
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Colleen Quigley^[35]	19:31	6K	December 10, 2016
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Aliphine Tuliamuk-Bolton	34:24	10K	February 4, 2017
	Rivers Edge Golf Course	Bend, Oregon	Leonard Korir	30:12	10K	February 4, 2017
2017
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky^[36]	Ian La Mere	29:10	10K	December 9, 2017
	Masterson Park	Lexington, Kentucky	Sarah Pagano	19:40	6K	December 9, 2017
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Emily Infeld	33:19	10K	February 3, 2018
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Leonard Korir	29:17	10K	February 3, 2018
2018
	Plantes Ferry Sports Complex	Spokane, Washington	Ben Blankenship	29:21	10K	December 8, 2018
	Plantes Ferry Sports Complex	Spokane, Washington	Katie Mackey	19:35	6K	December 8, 2018
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Shelby Houlihan	32:46.8	10K	February 2, 2019
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Shadrack Kipchirchir	28:52.5	10K^[37]	February 2, 2019
2019
	Lehigh University	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	Morgan Pearson	29:54	10K	December 14, 2019
	Lehigh University	Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	Aisling Cuffe	20:07	6K	December 14, 2019
	Mission Bay Park	San Diego, California	Natosha Rogers	35:44.3	10K	January 18, 2020
	Mission Bay Park	San Diego, California	Anthony Rotich	30:35.8	10K	January 18, 2020
2021
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Frankline Tonui	30:14.6^[38]	10K	December 11, 2021
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Natosha Rogers	19:42.0^[39]	6K	December 11, 2021
	Mission Bay Park	San Diego, California	Alicia Monson	34:01^[40]	10K	January 8, 2022
	Mission Bay Park	San Diego, California	Shadrack Kipchirchir	30:32^[41]	10K	January 8, 2022
2022
	Golden Gate Park^[42]	San Francisco, California	Cole Hocker	26:28	~9.6K	December 10, 2022
	Golden Gate Park	San Francisco, California	Bethany Hasz	17:54	~5.6K	December 10, 2022
	Pole Green Park	Richmond, Virginia	Ednah Kurgat	32:07	10K	January 21, 2023
	Pole Green Park	Richmond, Virginia	Emmanuel Bor	28:44	10K	January 21, 2023
2023
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Tai Dinger	30:48.0	10K	December 9, 2023
	Apalachee Regional Park	Tallahassee, Florida	Amanda Vestri	20:06.3	6K	December 9, 2023
	Pole Green Park	Richmond, Virginia		32:58.6	10K	January 20, 2024
	Pole Green Park	Richmond, Virginia	Cooper Teare	29:06.2	10K	January 20, 2024

See also

• USATF National Club Cross Country Championships
• USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships
• USA Indoor Track and Field Championships
• Foot Locker Cross Country Championships
• NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship
• NCAA Women's Cross Country Championship

External links

• Official website
• USA Cross Country Champions – Men
• USA Cross Country Champions – Women at USA Track & Field
• Media Guide

Notes and References

1. http://www.legacy.usatf.org/news/view.aspx?DUID=USATF_2009_02_07_17_12_05 Keflezighi, Brown take open titles at USA Cross Country Championships
2. http://www.legacy.usatf.org/statistics/champions/USAXC/men.asp USA Cross Country Champions - Men
3. Web site: UAS Track & Field - Results . https://web.archive.org/web/20220826024457/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/Events---Calendar/2015/USATF-National-Club-Cross-Country/Results.aspx . 2022-08-26.
4. Estes, Jim (2010-02-14). Ritzenhein and Flanagan cruise to US XC titles. IAAF. Retrieved on 2010-02-19.
5. http://www.legacy.usatf.org/news/view.aspx?DUID=USATF_2007_02_10_16_02_58 Culpepper, Kastor dominate at USA Cross Country Championships
6. Web site: The United States National Cross-Country Champions . www.therealxc.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20220706075324/http://www.therealxc.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/USA-XC-National-Champions4.pdf . 2022-07-06.
7. Note:The course length was reported to be 10K. Royle, on a rain soaked golf course with steep hills, beat the track 10,000 metres world record and Alberto Salazar by 2 seconds. Salazar tied the world record. The world record holder Henry Rono was in the race, finishing 37th.
8. News: The battle went to Royle. Sports Illustrated Vault | Si.com .
9. Web site: 1999 USA Winter Cross Country National Championships Women's 4k Results.
10. Web site: Unknown.
11. Web site: 1999 USA Winter Cross Country National Championships Women's 8k Results.
12. Web site: USATF - Events - 1999 USA Fall Cross Country Championships.
13. Web site: Goucher, Drossin Take Double Titles\ A Greensboro Runner Qualifies for Next Month's World Cross Country Championships in Portugal. 13 February 2000 .
14. Web site: USATF - Events - 2000 USA Fall Cross Country Championships.
15. Web site: USATF - Events - 2001 USA Fall Cross Country Championships - Results.
16. Web site: USATF - Events - 2002 USA Fall Cross Country Championships.
17. Web site: USATF - Events - 2003 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
18. Web site: USATF - Events - 2004 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
19. Web site: USATF - Events - 2005 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
20. Web site: USATF - Events - 2006 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
21. Web site: USATF - Events - 2007 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
22. Web site: USATF - Events - 2007 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
23. Web site: 2008 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships Final Results . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081549/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/events/2008/USATFClubXCChampionships/Results/OpenWomen.pdf . 2019-12-19 . 2008-12-13.
24. Web site: USATF - Events - 2009 USATF National Club Cross Country Championships.
25. Web site: Open Women Results - Women 6 km . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081545/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/events/2010/USATFClubXCChampionships/results/openwomen.asp . 2019-12-19.
26. Web site: Open Women Results - Individual Results . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081509/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/events/2011/USATFClubXCChampionships/results/openwomen.asp . 2019-12-19.
27. Web site: USA Track & Field - Women's Open . Legacy.usatf.org . 2022-09-08.
28. Web site: USA Track & Field - Open Men Overall . Legacy.usatf.org . 2013-12-14 . 2022-09-08.
29. Web site: USA Track & Field - Open Women Overall . Legacy.usatf.org . 2013-12-14 . 2022-09-08.
30. Web site: 2014 USATF National Club XC Championships - Men 10k Run CC Open . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081507/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/usatf/files/54/54a6a27b-3f00-4f60-a10c-e494f95757d0.htm . 2019-12-19 . 2014-12-13.
31. Web site: 2014 USATF National Club XC Championships - Overall Open Women . 2014-12-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081512/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/usatf/files/9b/9b4042a7-5d42-42fa-b601-f422dd02b15c.html . 2019-12-19.
32. Web site: USATF National Club XC. rtspt.com.
33. Web site: USATF National Club XC.
34. Web site: OPEN MEN'S 10K OVERALL . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081516/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/usatf/files/83/833f7d66-4d73-40ef-8c7e-e1db506ecd78.html . 2019-12-19.
35. Web site: OPEN WOMEN'S 6K OVERALL . https://web.archive.org/web/20191219081508/http://www.legacy.usatf.org/usatf/files/e6/e6d3aad6-a300-4a3e-a9de-30d48d28e867.html . 2019-12-19.
36. Web site: USA Track & Field - USATF National Club Cross Country Championships . Legacy.usatf.org . 2017-12-09 . 2022-09-08.
37. http://www.legacy.usatf.org/Events---Calendar/2019/USATF-Cross-Country-Championships.aspx 2019 USATF Cross Country Championships
38. https://crm.pttiming.com/uploads/projects/275/OpenMen.pdf 2021 USATF Club Cross Country Championships - Apalachee Regional Park - Tallahassee, FL SAT 9:45 AM Men's Open 10k
39. https://crm.pttiming.com/uploads/projects/275/OpenWomen.pdf 2021 USATF Club Cross Country Championships - Apalachee Regional Park - Tallahassee, FL SAT 9:00 AM Women's Open 6k
40. https://www.finishedresults.com/files/2022/XC/01-08-2022-USATF-Cross-Country-Championships/6.pdf 2022 USATF Cross Country Championship
41. https://www.finishedresults.com/files/2022/XC/01-08-2022-USATF-Cross-Country-Championships/7.pdf 2022 USATF Cross Country Championship
42. https://www.rtspt.com/events/usatf/clubxc22/ USATF Club Cross Country Championships December 10, 2022 -Polo Fields -Golden Gate Park San Francisco, CA Schedule/Results