| 45th World Athletics Cross Country Championships | |
|---|---|
 Runners during an event at the Games | |
| Organisers | World Athletics |
| Edition | 45th |
| Date | 30 March |
| Host city | Belgrade,Serbia |
| Venue | Park of Friendship |
| Events | 5 |
| Distances |
|
| Participation | 485 athletes from 51 nations |
| Official website | Belgrade 2024 |
The2024 World Athletics Cross Country Championships was the 45th edition of theWorld Athletics Cross Country Championships held on 30 March 2024 inBelgrade, Serbia. It was held in thePark of Friendship, located next to theDanube River. Originally planned to be held inMedulin andPula in Croatia in February 2024, theWorld Athletics announced in September 2023 that event would be moved to Belgrade. Belgrade has previously hosted the2013 European Cross Country Championships, and recently hosted the2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships.
The Championships consisted of five events– the 10 km main races for men and women, 8 km and 6 km races for under-20 men and women respectively, and a 4 x 2 km mixed relay. About 485 athletes from 51 nations participated in the events. There were nine sets of medals that were awarded across the five events. Kenya topped the medal table with 11 medals including six gold medals.
The inauguralWorld Cross Country Championships was held at theHippodroom Waregem inWaregem, Belgium in March 1973.[1] TheInternational Amateur Athletic Federation invited 150 nations, of which 21 nations competed in the1973 IAAF World Cross Country Championships across three events (senior men and women, junior men).[2] The junior women's category was introduced for the first time in the1989 event held atStavanger, Norway.[3] Since the inaugural edition, it was held as an annual event, with an increasing number of nations participating in it. In the2000 World Championships held atVilamoura in Portugal, 76 nations participated in six events.[4] For the first time since its inception, there was no global level championship forcross country running in 2012 and the IAAF announced that the World Cross Country Championships would become a biennial format from theron.[5] The event was not held in 2021 due toCovid-19 pandemic, and a virtual event was held in its place.[6] While initially postponed to September 2021 and later to 2022, it was not held due to travel restrictions.[7] The event returned in2023, and was hosted inBathurst, Australia. The championships were once again delayed to 2023 in September 2021, due to Australian travel restrictions.[8]
The event was originally planned to be held inMedulin andPula in Croatia in February 2024.[9] However, due to lack of preparations, on the 15th of September 2023, it was announced by World Athletics that the event is to be moved to an undisclosed new venue.[10] On 27 September 2023, World Athletics awarded the hosting rights toBelgrade.[11] Belgrade has previously hosted the2013 European Cross Country Championships, and recently hosted multi-nation events such as2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships,2017 Balkan Championships, and2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships.[12]
The event was held in thePark of Friendship, located next to theSava andDanube rivers. The main course consisted of a 1.887 km (1.173 mi) loop, with 0.27 km (0.17 mi) and 0.32 km (0.20 mi) start and finish straights respectively. The event was held on a predominantly grass terrain covered with dirt and sand.[13]
The 45th edition of theWorld Athletics Cross Country Championships was held on 30 March 2024.[13] The schedule consisted of five events– 10 km men and women, 8 km under-20 men, 6 km under-20 women, and 4 x 2 km mixed relay.[14] In each of the races, each nation was allowed to field a maximum of up to six athletes. The mixed relay team consisted of teams of two women and two men each running one loop of the course in a specified order, starting with a male and alternating between genders. Athletes were to carry a wristband that was to be transferred to the next athlete within the takeover zone.[13]
| Date | Time (CET) | Events |
|---|---|---|
| 30 March | 11:00 | U20 race women |
| 11:35 | U20 race men | |
| 12:15 | Mixed Relay | |
| 12:45 | Senior race women | |
| 13:30 | Senior race men |
Nine sets of medals were awarded to the competitors across the five events. Apart from the medals awarded to the top three finishers in the individual categories, medals were also awarded to the best teams. Any nation required a minimum of four athletes competing in a single event to be eligible for the team medals. In case of more than four participants, the times of top four athletes on each team were counted towards the race result.[13] Apart from the medals, the top six finishers in individual senior events, and top four teams from the relay event were also awarded prize money. The individual winners were awardedUS$30,000 while the top teams wonUS$20,000. The top relay team was awardedUS$12,000 in prize money.[13]
Four nations won medals in the competition. Kenya topped the medal table with 11 medals including six gold medals.[15]
* Host nation (Serbia)
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kenya | 6 | 2 | 3 | 11 |
| 2 |  Ethiopia | 2 | 6 | 2 | 10 |
| 3 |  Uganda | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| 4 |  Great Britain | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Totals (4 entries) | 9 | 9 | 9 | 27 | |
About 485 athletes from 51 countries participated in the Games.[16][17] Competitors included the defending senior men's and women's championsJacob Kiplimo of Uganda andBeatrice Chebet of Kenya respectively.[16]
Afghanistan (1)
Argentina (1)
Athlete Refugee Team (4)
Australia (20)
Bulgaria (1)
Burundi (9)
Canada (28)
Central African Republic (1)
Colombia (5)
Cook Islands (1)
DR Congo (1)
Ecuador (2)
Eritrea (7)
Estonia (3) Ethiopia (33)
Fiji (7)
France (20) Great Britain (33)
Guam (1)
Honduras (1)
Hong Kong (2)
India (6)
Ireland (8)
Japan (24)
Kazakhstan (14) Kenya (30)
Kyrgyzstan (1)
Lebanon (14)
Macau (2)
Mexico (10)
Montenegro (2)
Morocco (14)
Netherlands (1)
New Zealand (18)
Northern Mariana Islands (1)
Norway (1)
Palestine (1)
Peru (13)
Rwanda (4) Serbia (13)
Seychelles (1)
Singapore (5)
South Africa (28)
Spain (19)
Sweden (2)
Tajikistan (2)
Tanzania (12) Uganda (27)
United States (33)
Uruguay (1)
Zimbabwe (2)In the men's race,Chimdessa Debele of Ethiopia led during the initial laps from France's Mehdi Frere while most of the other athletes were part of one large chasing pack. While the initial leaders were caught by the chasing pack, Kenya’s Gideon Rono mounted a solo attack, which was soon mitigated by the main pack. In the 24th minute of the race,Jacob Kiplimo andBerihu Aregawi made their moves to lead ahead of the pack. Kiplimo and Aregawi finished in first and second, replicating their performance from the previous edition.Benson Kiplangat of Kenya won the bronze, while the third place finisher from the last edition, Joshua Cheptegei, finished sixth. In the team contest, Uganda and Kenya were level on points in the third lap. However, Kenya inched ahead, and won the gold as five Kenyans finished in the top eight places.[18]
In the women's event, the Kenyan team ofAgnes Jebet Ngetich,Beatrice Chebet,Emmaculate Anyango,Lilian Kasait Rengeruk, andMargaret Kipkemboi led from the front since the start with Uganda’sJoy Cheptoyek and USA’sWeini Kelati Frezghi trying to keep up with the leaders. By the second lap, only Uganda’sSarah Chelangat and Kazakhstan’sDaisy Jepkemei were close to the Kenyan group. While Anyango and Ngetich dropped back, it was down to Chebet, Rengeruk and Kipkemboi for the race win. Chetbet won and successfully defended her title, followed by Rengeruk and Kipkemboi in second and third respectively. It was just the fifth time in history that both the senior men's and women's champions have retained their titles at the World Cross Country Championships. Kenya also took the women's team title.[19] Kenya also won the mixed relay event.[20]
World Championships organised byWorld Athletics | |
|---|---|
| Outdoor | |
| Indoor | |
| Continental Cup* | |
| U20 | |
| U18 | |
| Cross Country | |
| Race Walking | |
| Women's Road Race | |
| Marathon | |
| Half Marathon | |
| Road Relay | |
| Relays | |
| Ultimate | |
| Road Running | |
.jpg)