Ethiopian teenager Senayet Getachew upset the pre-race favourites to win a close and arduous U20 women&rsquo;s race staged in searing 36C heat at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23.
Getachew, 17, who finished third in her national junior cross country trial, claimed gold in the rough-and-tumble 6km encounter.
Ethiopian compatriot Medina Eisa, 18, finished close on her teammate&rsquo;s heels to snatch the silver. Just a breadth away in third was Kenya&rsquo;s Pamela Kosgei, 15.
The podium times reflect the closeness of the race which featured steep downhills, mud and slush, taxing climbs and challenging mounds with Getachew clocking 20:53, Medina 21:00 and Kosgei 21:01.
Getachew credited her Ethiopian teammates with assisting her breakthrough victory.
"We were preparing ourselves for this world championship and our team spirit was good,&rdquo; Getachew said. &ldquo;When we run together in this race, that team spirit helped me to win."
Sixty-one athletes from 16 countries started the event and there was drama right from the start with the world&rsquo;s leading juniors slipping and tumbling in the mud. At the end of the first of three 2km laps, nine runners were bunched together, clocking 7:10 at the turn.
The story was similar after the second lap with the top seven separated but just one second.
Sheer guts determined the top three on the final lap as they pushed through the heat and the pain to reach the finish line.
The event was staged at Bathurst&rsquo;s Mount Panorama, the spiritual home of Australian motor sport which hosts the annual Bathurst 1000, a 1000km annual race for touring cars, held each October.&nbsp; The site for the 2km loop course was chosen because of the rural setting and tough terrain.
For her part, Eisa can add her silver medal to the 5000m gold she won at the 2022 World U20 Championships. Kosgei, meanwhile, gets to take home bronze after previously placing fifth in the world U20 steeplechase.
By claiming the medals, the top three finishers also honoured history and previous champions as the last time an athlete outside of Kenya or Ethiopia made it on to the U20 women&rsquo;s podium at the World Cross was 24 years ago, back in 1999.
What&rsquo;s more, no athlete outside of Kenya or Ethiopia has won the U20 women&rsquo;s world cross &ndash;country title for 28 years.
Predictably, in the team competition Ethiopia won gold (15) while Kenya scored silver (22). More surprisingly the United States snared the bronze (54), led by Ellie Shea.
Louise Evans for World Athletics
&nbsp;
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 75%; border-color: #ffffff; border-style: solid;" border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #fd5249; text-align: center;" colspan="3">U20 WOMEN'S MEDALLISTS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #e9c968; text-align: center;">🥇</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #e9c968;">Senayet Getachew 🇪🇹 ETH</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #e9c968;">20:53</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #ced4d9; text-align: center;">🥈</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #ced4d9;">Medina Eisa 🇪🇹 ETH</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #ced4d9;">21:00</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #bd895e; text-align: center;">🥉</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #bd895e;">Pamela Kosgei 🇰🇪 KEN</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #bd895e;">21:01</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #34495e; text-align: left;" colspan="3">&nbsp;&nbsp;<a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://www.worldathletics.org/en/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/results/women/u20-race/final/result" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

44th World Athletics Cross Country Championships

Ethiopia's Senayet Getachew upset the pre-race favourites to win a close and arduous U20 women’s race

Getachew grabs surprise U20 women’s gold in Bathurst

They came, they ran, they conquered.
The Kenyan quartet of Emmanuel Wanyonyi, Mirriam Cherop, Daniel Kyumbe Munguti and Brenda Chebet avenged their country&rsquo;s defeat from four years ago and regained the mixed relay title at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23.
It didn&rsquo;t come easy, though, with South Africa and Australia both putting up a good fight on the first three legs. Arch rivals Ethiopia, meanwhile, eventually came through to finish runner-up to Kenya with host nation Australia earning a well-received bronze medal.
Most eyes were on Australia&rsquo;s Commonwealth 1500m champion Ollie Hoare, Kenya&rsquo;s 2021 world U20 800m champion Wanyonyi and Ethiopia&rsquo;s African 1500m bronze medallist Adihana Kasaye, But as athletes entered the vineyard section of the course, it was South Africa&rsquo;s Commonwealth finalist Ryan Mphahlele who led the pack.
Wanyonyi then came back and moved past Mphahlele into the lead, but the South African had saved enough for a final burst and ended the first stage in pole position. Hoare came through in third, six seconds behind the leading two teams, with Kasaye a further second in arrears.
Mirriam Cherop, the 2016 African U20 cross-country champion, gave Kenya a comfortable lead at the start of the second leg while 800m specialist Prudence Sekgodiso tried her best to stay in close contact. But it didn&rsquo;t take long for Australian 1500m record-holder Jess Hull to make an impact on the race.
The world and Olympic finalist bided her time on the first half of the leg and then dug in for the final few minutes, first moving past Sekgodiso and then hunting down Cherop. Hull overtook the Kenyan on the last downhill section, then turned the corner and extended her lead through the zig-zag tyre zone.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63f05d8a896a5cad999d9c26.jpg" alt="Athletes on the first leg in the mixed relay in Bathurst" />
Athletes on the first leg in the mixed relay in Bathurst (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
Hull &ndash; having put in a 5:47 leg, 11 seconds quicker than anyone else on that stage &ndash; handed over to teammate Stewart McSweyn with a five-second lead over Kenya, whose third-leg runner was 3:36 1500m man Daniel Kyumbe Munguti. Ethiopia&rsquo;s Hawi Abera, meanwhile, came through at end of the leg to overtake South Africa&rsquo;s Sekgodiso and move into third. Further back, 2017 world steeplechase champion Emma Coburn elevated the USA from 10th to fifth.
McSweyn maintained Australia&rsquo;s lead for a couple of minutes, but Munguti reeled him in and forged ahead. The Kenyan completed his stage in 5:09, giving his team an eight-second lead going into the final leg.
McSweyn held on to second place with his 5:22 effort, but Tshepo Tshite put South Africa back into contention thanks to a 5:11 leg, handing over in third place. Steeplechase specialist Getnet Wale also had a good leg (5:13), to hand over just one second behind South Africa.
World U20 1500m silver medallist Brenda Chebet ran a confident final leg for Kenya. Australian anchor Abbey Caldwell was cheered on by the home crowd but had little response when Ethiopia&rsquo;s world U20 champion Birke Haylom moved past her.
Haylom closed slightly on Chebet, and produced the fastest split of the stage (6:21) but the Kenyan was too far ahead to be caught and charged through the finish line in 23:14.
Ethiopia took silver in 23:21 and Australia claimed bronze in 23:26, finishing 24 seconds ahead of South Africa (23:50). USA held on to fifth place in 24:32, seven seconds ahead of Great Britain &amp; NI.
&ldquo;If you perform well in cross country, it's one of the assurances that you have prepared well in other competitions,&rdquo; said Kenya&rsquo;s Munguti. &ldquo;We are happy with where we are now, and trust that we will do well in the future.&rdquo;
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics
&nbsp;
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 75%; border-color: #ffffff; border-style: solid;" border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="3">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #fd5249; text-align: center;" colspan="3">MIXED RELAY MEDALLISTS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #e9c968; text-align: center;">🥇</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #e9c968;">Kenya 🇰🇪</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #e9c968;">23:14</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #ced4d9; text-align: center;">🥈</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #ced4d9;">Ethiopia 🇪🇹</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #ced4d9;">23:21</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 10%; background-color: #bd895e; text-align: center;">🥉</td>
<td style="width: 60%; background-color: #bd895e;">Australia 🇦🇺</td>
<td style="width: 30%; background-color: #bd895e;">23:26</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="background-color: #34495e; text-align: left;" colspan="3">&nbsp;&nbsp;<a style="color: #ffffff;" href="https://worldathletics.org/en/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/results/mixed/mixed-relay/final/result" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Full results</a></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>

Kenyan quartet conquers strong Ethiopian and Australian squads

Kenya regains mixed relay gold in Bathurst

Australia&rsquo;s rich athletics history has been celebrated in Bathurst today with the award of three World Athletics Heritage Plaques.
The <a href="https://worldathletics.org/heritage/plaque" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athletics Heritage Plaque</a> is a location-based recognition, awarded for an outstanding contribution to the worldwide history and development of the sport of track and field athletics and of out-of-stadia athletics disciplines such as cross country, mountain, road, trail and ultra-running, and race walking.
World Athletics President Sebastian Coe made the announcement at an Australian Team Reunion ahead of this afternoon&rsquo;s 44th edition of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships. The reunion took place at the Rydges Hotel, Bathurst, which overlooks the cross-country course, and was attended by most of Australia&rsquo;s individual top-10 World Cross finishers, including 2004 world champion Benita Willis, Jackie Perkins, Krishna Stanton, Rob De Castella, Steve Moneghetti and Craig Mottram.
&ldquo;It gives me great pleasure to mark the staging of the first World Athletics Series event held in Australia since the 2001 Grand Prix Final in Melbourne by announcing three World Athletics Heritage Plaques,&rdquo; commented Coe.
&ldquo;Australia, which in 1912 was one of the founding members of World Athletics (formerly IAAF), has made a considerable contribution to our sport&rsquo;s history and development, three important elements of which we recognise today with plaques.
&ldquo;In the posthumous category of &lsquo;Legend&rsquo;, we celebrate the achievements of John Landy (1930 to 2022) and Ron Clarke (1937 to 2015), two of the greatest middle and long-distance world record breakers. While they missed out on ultimate Olympic glory, their successful careers exemplified grit and determination, and have inspired generations of runners around the world.&rdquo;
Landy&rsquo;s and Clarke&rsquo;s plaques will be permanently displayed at the tracks of their clubs, Geelong Guild AC and Glenhuntly AC. Incidentally, Glenhuntly&rsquo;s Logan Janetzki was entered for the U20 men's race at today&rsquo;s championships.
&ldquo;The third plaque, awarded in the category of &lsquo;Culture&rsquo;, recognises the Australian Track &amp; Field Coaches Association Journal, formerly &lsquo;Modern Athlete &amp; Coach&rsquo;, which was founded in 1955 by Jess Jarver (1922-2005). The journal remains one of our sport&rsquo;s foremost coaching publications.&rdquo;
The ATFCA Journal plaque will be permanently displayed at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.
Today&rsquo;s announcement brings to a total of six the Heritage Plaques awarded to Australia since the programme was inaugurated in December 2018. The previous three plaques were bestowed to Betty Cuthbert (&lsquo;Legend&rsquo;, 2018), Stawell Gift (&lsquo;Competition&rsquo;, 2019) and Percy Cerutty (&lsquo;Legend&rsquo;, 2021).
World Athletics Heritage

Australia’s rich athletics history has been celebrated in Bathurst today with the award of three World Athletics Heritage Plaques

World Athletics Heritage Plaques awarded to Clarke, Landy and ATFCA journal in Bathurst

Two hundred years after gold was first discovered near the Australian country town of Bathurst, about 450 elite runners from more than 40 teams will descend on the historic inland centre to compete for elusive gold at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships.
Controversially, the first gold unearthed near Bathurst by Ulster land surveyor James MacBrien in 1823 was covered up by his colonial employers who feared a gold rush would ruin their plans for a British settlement.
And so for 28 years the gold under Bathurst&rsquo;s red soil lay hidden until 1851 when experienced English gold prospector Edward Hargraves advised the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper he&rsquo;d found gold north of Bathurst. And so Bathurst&rsquo;s famous gold rush began.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63f017b3922df1b8abf2e129.jpg" alt="Gold-seekers arriving in Bathurst in 1851" />
Gold-seekers arriving in Bathurst in 1851 (&copy; Hulton / Getty Images)
</div>
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63f01807922df1b8abf2e12c.jpg" alt="The transport of gold by cart from Bathurst to the Treasury Building in Sydney, during the Gold Rush in Australia" />
The transport of gold by cart from Bathurst to the Treasury Building in Sydney, during the Gold Rush in Australia (&copy; Hulton / Getty)
</div>
About 370,000 migrants arrived from Europe, the Americas and Asia to try their luck, trebling the population of the then tiny backwater.
Another 20 years later in 1871 Bathurst became the focus of the known world when 33-year-old German prospector Bernhardt Holtermann dug up the largest lump of gold ever found &ndash; a whopping 1.5-metre-high slab unearthed at Hill End, north of Bathurst. It yielded 93kg of gold &ndash; worth about &euro;4million today. His find sparked Bathurst&rsquo;s second gold rush.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63f0198e922df1b8abf2e135.jpg" alt="Bernhardt Holtermann with the gold nugget he dug up in Bathurst" />
Bernhardt Holtermann with the gold nugget he dug up in Bathurst
</div>
Bathurst is also famous for being Australia&rsquo;s oldest inland town, some 200km west of Sydney on Australia&rsquo;s east coast.
British settlers reached the Bathurst Plains 210 years ago in 1813 when the government surveyor George Evans followed the crossing over the Blue Mountains long known to the indigenous populations but &ldquo;discovered&rdquo; by a trio of British explorers Gregory Blaxland, William Charles Wentworth and William Lawson in 1813.
The Blue Mountains &ndash; part of Australia&rsquo;s Great Dividing Range series of mountains, ridges and plateaus &ndash; west of Sydney proved a huge geographical barrier to early British settlers. The challenge of building a road and then a rail link proved much tougher than finding a track. The first railway opened in 1868 and included zigzag sections to negotiate the steep terrain. In 1901 brake failure led to a goods train derailment. Miraculously, no one was injured and after three days of wrangling the engine was dragged back from the brink.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63f01955922df1b8abf2e132.jpg" alt="A braking failure leads to a goods derailment" />
A braking failure leads to a goods derailment
</div>
The rail link led to massive growth in Australia&rsquo;s central western plains.
Nowadays, Bathurst is famous for being the home of the Bathurst 1000 annual touring car race. Depending on your mind-set, this annual date in the Australian sporting calendar in October is either exhilarating or excruciating as the event takes between six and seven hours and involves driving 161 laps of a 6.213km street circuit loop. The undisputed &lsquo;King of the Mountain&rsquo; is the late Australian racing car driver Peter Brock, who won the event an unsurpassed nine times in the 1970s-80s.
The 450 athletes lining up for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships on Saturday need only complete 10km for the seniors race and 8km and 6km for the U20 men and women respectively.
Not only will they be running over some sections of the Bathurst 1000 course but over ground that has been yielding gold and creating legends for two centuries.
Louise Evans for World Athletics

Two hundred years after gold was first discovered near Bathurst, about 450 elite runners will descend on the city to compete for gold at the World Cross Country Championships.

Chasing gold in Bathurst

Competing at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23 will be an emotional roller coaster for US steeplechase champion Emma Coburn who will be running to fulfil her mother&rsquo;s dying wish.
Coburn lost her mother Annie to cancer just six weeks ago and she received the news she&rsquo;d been selected to represent USA in the mixed relay in Bathurst while her mother was in hospice care.
&ldquo;Before she passed, there were lots of conversations about her wishes for her children,&rdquo; Coburn said. &ldquo;Her wish for me was that I keep running. One of her favourite things in her life was my running.
&ldquo;It was physically challenging to go through that loss but I ran every day during her hospice care and after her passing and tried to remember that she wanted me to be strong and to carry on.&rdquo;
Knowing that she was flying to Australia to run for her country at a major championship for the ninth time gave Coburn a new lease of life as she dealt with her grief.
&ldquo;I found out that I&rsquo;d been invited to participate in this relay during the midst of all of that and I was immediately light and excited and hopeful,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Any time you get to represent your country at a world championship is really special.&rdquo;
Colorado-based Coburn, 32, has previously only ever contested the steeplechase at major championships, winning the 2017 world title, the 2019 world silver medal and the 2016 Olympic bronze.
Doing a 2km cross country loop as part of a four-person team is a new and exciting challenge for the versatile runner, who&rsquo;ll be supported in the mixed relay by US teammates Heather MacLean, a 2021 Tokyo Olympic 1500m semi-finalist, steeplechase expert Alec Basten, and 2019 mixed relay runner Jordan Mann.
Kenya, Ethiopia and Australia all have stronger teams on paper but the 30C+ degree heat will make the challenging Bathurst course even tougher.
But Coburn has added motivation &ndash; running to make her mum proud.
&ldquo;I know that participating is a big first step and continuing on with my career without her physically here,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;It will be a special day.&rdquo;
Louise Evans for World Athletics

Competing at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23 will be an emotional roller coaster for US steeplechase champion Emma Coburn

Coburn competes in Bathurst to honour her mother's dying wish

World Athletics president Seb Coe says the World Cross Country Championships will herald a golden decade of sport in Australia.
The Cross Country event is being held at the iconic Mount Panorama race course in Bathurst this weekend.
"Bathurst is an iconic race track of the world, but people will now in the same breath be thinking of Bathurst and the staging of a World Cross Country Championships,&rdquo; Coe told a media conference today.
&ldquo;Australia can tap into a golden decade for our sport with an Olympic Games in 2032 and obviously a Commonwealth Games in 2026.&rdquo;
Coe said World Athletics was in the process of re-invigorating cross country and was using a new tough layout at Bathurst to help promote the discipline.
&ldquo;I want everyone to know that World Athletics takes cross country very seriously,&rdquo; he said.
&ldquo;This is probably the toughest cross country course that&rsquo;s certainly ever been served up at a World Championship."
&ldquo;We want this (Bathurst) to be a glide patch to other things as well - the world cross country tour and we&rsquo;ll continue to have discussions with the IOC about making sure it gets recognition at some stage in the Olympic Games.&rdquo;
Coe said he was sure event ambassador Paul Tergat, the Kenyan who won the title five times, would agree there was no divisibility between achievements on the cross country track or at the Olympics. 
&ldquo;It is an essential part of the formative years in the development of young athletes not just mentally and physically,&rdquo; he said.
&ldquo;Any athlete who can master cross country from a young age will be uniquely well placed to pursue an endurance career on the track.&rdquo;
Coe also said he loved the &ldquo;Aussie&rdquo; parts of the Bathurst course known as Bondi Beach, the Boomerang, and the Billabong.
&ldquo;I like the fact the course is a challenge and gives interest to the spectators,&rdquo; he said.
By Mike Osborne for WXC Bathurst

World Athletics president Seb Coe says the World Cross Country Championships will herald a golden decade of sport in Australia. The cross country event is being held at the iconic Mount Panorama race course in Bathurst this weekend.

World Cross Country Championships to herald a Golden Decade for Australia says Coe

Absence, they say, makes the heart grow fonder. But in the case of World Athletics Cross Country Championships, it also seemingly makes the courses tougher.
Four years have passed since the memorable 2019 edition in the Danish city of Aarhus, where athletes had to run up a museum roof, trudge through a mud pit, and dash through a Viking zone. It was widely regarded as one of the most unique and challenging courses ever at a World Cross.
Now, on the eve of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23, many people are convinced that the course for this year&rsquo;s edition is even tougher.
&ldquo;In recent years we&rsquo;ve talked about reinvigorating cross country, and we adjusted the course in Aarhus to create a more challenging one,&rdquo; said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m delighted that the team here in Bathurst have picked up that torch and done an outstanding job. I&rsquo;d say this is certainly one of the toughest courses ever for a World Cross.
&ldquo;We are really pleased to be here,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;In the 50-year history of the World Cross, this is just the second time it has been held in Oceania, and it&rsquo;s the first time it has been held in Australia.
&ldquo;Bathurst has one of the most iconic motor racing tracks in the world, but now, in the same breath, people will think of Bathurst staging the World Cross Country Championships.&rdquo;
Local Organising Committee Co-Chair Matt Whitbread expressed his pleasure at welcoming the world to Australia for a global athletics event.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re delighted to have everyone here in Bathurst,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;After the last edition in Denmark, there was plenty of inspiration. We got the brief that the course needed to be hard, and hopefully we&rsquo;ve achieved that.
&ldquo;We were originally scheduled for 2021, then 2022, and we&rsquo;re finally here now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re thrilled to be here and we welcome you all.&rdquo;
Coe also used the opportunity to underline the importance of cross country.
&ldquo;World Athletics takes cross country very seriously, and the importance of cross country goes beyond a great World Championships like this,&rdquo; he said.
&ldquo;Cross country is an absolutely essential part of the development of young athletes. Any athlete who can master cross country and can do so from a young age is going to be well placed to pursue an endurance career on the track.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ef10f917298c34b75bd4ae.jpg" alt="Matt Whitbread, Sebastian Coe and Paul Tergat at the press conference in Bathurst" />
Matt Whitbread, Sebastian Coe and Paul Tergat at the press conference in Bathurst (&copy; Steve Christo)
</div>
Championships ambassador Paul Tergat is living proof of someone who benefitted from cross-country running. A five-time world champion at cross country, the Kenyan legend also set world records on the track and roads during his long career.
&ldquo;Cross country is part of my DNA,&rdquo; said Tergat. &ldquo;This is where my career started. Being here, especially in Australia where I have such fond memories, makes it more special.
&ldquo;With cross country, not only do you have to think about the athletes you&rsquo;re racing against, you also have to think about the terrain and the course,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;I believe that makes you tougher. Each course is different, which makes cross country unique.&rdquo;
<h2>Cheptegei and Kamworor ready for rematch</h2>
Uganda&rsquo;s Joshua Cheptegei and Kenya&rsquo;s Geoffrey Kamworor &ndash; who, between them, have won the past three senior men&rsquo;s titles &ndash; will once again go head to head on Saturday.
Cheptegei&rsquo;s compatriot Jacob Kiplimo, who took silver in 2019, is also in Bathurst, meaning the full podium will be reunited.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s exciting that the people who shared the podium in 2019 are all back here,&rdquo; said Cheptegei, the 5000m and 10,000m world record-holder. &ldquo;I know it&rsquo;s going to be mind-blowing and will be something that will stay in our hearts and minds for a long time.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ef115d17298c34b75bd4b1.jpg" alt="Joshua Cheptegei at the press conference in Bathurst" />
Joshua Cheptegei at the press conference in Bathurst (&copy; Steve Christo)
</div>
Memories of the 2017 World Cross Country Championships have certainly stayed with Cheptegei over the past six years. On that occasion, with the World Cross taking place on home soil, Cheptegei had built up a huge lead but fatigue eventually got the better of him and he faded to 30th, as Kamworor successfully defended his title.
&ldquo;Sometimes you have to accept what life throws at you and then learn from it,&rdquo; said Cheptegei. &ldquo;I can proudly say that I am a better athlete because of the incident in 2017. It taught me a lot of lessons about my life and my career. When you want something in life, it&rsquo;s important to chase your goals, but you also have to be patient and make certain judgements.&rdquo;
For Kamworor, it was the 2011 edition of the World Cross that holds most significance.
&ldquo;The first major title I won was the U20 title at the 2011 World Cross Country Championships,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That motivated me so much, and ever since then I have loved cross country.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ef11ff17298c34b75bd4b4.jpg" alt="Geoffrey Kamworor at the press conference in Bathurst" />
Geoffrey Kamworor at the press conference in Bathurst (&copy; Steve Christo)
</div>
Despite winning two individual senior titles and one U20 title, Kamworor is yet to win a senior team gold at the World Cross. He hopes that will change on Saturday, though.
&ldquo;We had great training with the team and we hope to do our best tomorrow and hopefully win the team title,&rdquo; he said.
<h2>Hull and Coburn take different routes to Bathurst relay</h2>
Dramatically contrasting paths have led accidental contender Emma Coburn and child prodigy Jessica Hull to the World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst where they are both in contention for medals.
Colorado-based Coburn, 32, is looking forward to leading USA in the mixed relay, despite being an athlete who spurned cross country at school and college in favour of volleyball and track.
Coburn instead went on to become a steeplechase specialist, winning the 2017 world title at that discipline, as well as the 2019 world silver and 2016 Olympic bronze.
Coburn said the longer cross country courses were the reasons she never got into the discipline.
&ldquo;I was never that mentally into it (cross country) because I played volleyball during the same season in high school,&rdquo; Coburn said. &ldquo;In college I tried it, but I wasn&rsquo;t that great. I always loved the steeplechase and the track.&rdquo;
Being able to compete in a mixed relay &ndash; the ninth time Coburn has represented the USA at a global championship &ndash; where each runner completes a 2km loop has changed her attitude about cross country.
&ldquo;This 2km distance I think is really fun,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;The muscular strength in my legs will be beneficial on some of the technically challenging parts of the race, like the mud pit.
&ldquo;As a steeplechaser, I like the challenge of this course. We&rsquo;ll be going for it, trying our hardest to conquer the course and come out with some hardware.
&ldquo;This is a fun opportunity and something different for me. I&rsquo;m eager to try new things and mix it up and this is an opportunity to challenge my mind and body.&rdquo;
Coburn will be supported in the mixed relay by US teammates Heather MacLean, a 2021 Tokyo Olympic 1500m semi-finalist, steeplechase expert Alec Basten, and 2019 mixed relay runner Jordan Mann.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ef12b417298c34b75bd4b7.jpg" alt="Jess Hull and Emma Coburn at the press conference in Bathurst" />
Jess Hull and Emma Coburn at the press conference in Bathurst (&copy; Steve Christo)
</div>
The USA will be vying for the medals alongside Australia, whose team boasts a cross country child enthusiast in Hull.
Twenty years ago Hull kicked off her athletics career doing 2km primary school cross country carnivals across the road from her home in New South Wales, Australia.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of scary,&rdquo; Hull said. &ldquo;It was part of my school sports days and it was 2km. Now I&rsquo;ll do a 2km hot lap of the Bathurst course. So it&rsquo;s kind of a full circle moment.
&ldquo;If we were to get the win out there, it would be pretty special,&rdquo; she added. &ldquo;It is incredible that we can talk about the Aussie team even having a win. It would be quite a remarkable day if we got to hear the national anthem while we are out there.&rdquo;
Athletics has taken Hull, 26, from school cross country carnivals to the world stage where she&rsquo;s been a 1500m finalist at three majors &ndash; the 2021 Tokyo Olympics (11th), the 2022 World Championships in Oregon (7th) and the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham (8th).
Hull will be joined on the tough Bathurst course by three other Australian 1500m specialists: Commonwealth champion Oliver Hoare, Commonwealth bronze medallist Abbey Caldwell, and Olympic finalist Stewart McSweyn.
The mixed relay is the first medal event on the championship programme on Saturday (18). 15 teams will compete for the medals, running in a 4x2km man-woman-man-woman format with each athlete having a wristband which they transfer to their teammate in the takeover zone.
Jon Mulkeen and Louise Evans for World Athletics

Absence, they say, makes the heart grow fonder. But in the case of World Athletics Cross Country Championships, it also seemingly makes the courses tougher.

Bathurst ready to welcome the world on ‘toughest ever’ championship course

The first races of the World Cross Country Championships Bathurst 2023 have seen some of Oceania’s best athletes battle it out at the Golden Ticket races in the hope to claim one of the final spots in Saturday’s Championships events.

Golden Morning for Elite Athletes in Bathurst  | Golden Ticket Recap

Paul Tergat knows more than a thing or two about cross-country running.
A five-time winner of the senior men&rsquo;s world cross-country title, Tergat is widely regarded as not only one of the greatest runners of all time at the discipline, but also one of the leading authorities on the subject.
He retired from competition more than a decade ago, but he remains as engaging a figure off the track as he was during his heyday. Rarely seen without a smile on his face &ndash; especially when in close proximity to a competition venue &ndash; Tergat is more than happy to share his wisdom with anyone who asks.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63c6b3431b203698dd93411f.jpg" alt="Paul Tergat wins the senior men's race at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships" />
Paul Tergat wins the senior men's race at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships (&copy; Getty Images)
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In recent months he has acted as a mentor for the Athlete Refugee Team, particularly during their preparation for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23, for which Tergat is the official ambassador.
Earlier this year, members of the Athlete Refugee Team based in Kenya moved their base to the Complete Sports Training Centre in Eldoret, where Tergat has witnessed first-hand how the entire squad is starting to thrive.
&ldquo;We have fully embraced them and aim to train them to be a complete athlete,&rdquo; said Tergat. &ldquo;We also treat them as we would any other athlete &ndash; we don&rsquo;t want them to feel like refugees; we want them to feel like us, like our own.
&ldquo;Being a refugee is not something that happens by choice,&rdquo; added the former world record-holder. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m so thankful for all the work done by various governments and organisations to help these athletes fulfil their potential. And more importantly for World Athletics to give them the opportunity to compete in global events, it&rsquo;s a big plus, and it gives them hope and dignity.
&ldquo;The athletes who are competing here are carrying the hopes and dreams of refugees worldwide, and they can see that there&rsquo;s something positive coming out of their situation.&rdquo;
One particular recent source of inspiration came earlier this month when Anjelina Nadai Lohalith won the European Champion Clubs Cup Cross Country in Castellon, the first victory by an ART member in an international competition.
&ldquo;That was a big celebration for us,&rdquo; said Tergat. &ldquo;Not just for Anjelina, but for the other athletes back in the camp. She has become an inspiration and a huge source of encouragement.&rdquo;
Tergat hopes it may inspire more women and girls to join refugee training camps, addressing the current slight imbalance. &ldquo;We have more men than women, so we need to encourage more women to join the camps. The camp has a great role model in Janeth Jepkosgei,&rdquo; Tergat said of the 2007 world 800m champion, who is head coach of the Athlete Refugee Team competing in Bathurst.
<h2>A jog down memory lane</h2>
Being back at a World Cross &ndash; and at a global athletics event in Australia &ndash; has triggered many fond memories for Tergat.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63eefc368d0154b8f71b7e91.JPG" alt="Paul Tergat at the Sydney Olympic Stadium" />
Paul Tergat at the Sydney Olympic Stadium (&copy; WXC Bathurst 23 LOC)
</div>
&ldquo;When I found out I was coming here, I said that I couldn&rsquo;t come all this way without visiting Sydney where, 20-plus years ago, I missed out on a gold medal by the thickness of a vest,&rdquo; said Tergat, who claimed silver in the 10,000 at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games behind his great rival Haile Gebrselassie.
&ldquo;It was so emotional to be back there,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;When I stepped on the track, I had to go like this (raises hands triumphantly).
&ldquo;And being here, at a World Athletics Cross Country Championships, brings back a lot of memories to me. I have been to many World Cross Country Championships, and I won five of them. My only dream for the athletes competing here is that they give their best.
&ldquo;I remember my first World Cross more than 30 years ago, which was also the first time I&rsquo;d left my country,&rdquo; said Tergat, who travelled to the 1992 World Cross Country Championships in Boston but was ultimately unable to compete due to injury. &ldquo;Simply being on the team for that event was very exciting, I couldn&rsquo;t sleep. It&rsquo;s very emotional and difficult to explain. It&rsquo;s unique.&rdquo;
During his youth, and throughout his formative years in the sport, Tergat faced hardships. While he was at school in Kenya, he was a beneficiary of the school feeding programme as his parents were unable to provide food every day at home.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63eefb448d0154b8f71b7e8e.jpg" alt="Paul Tergat in his role as ambassador for the World Food Programme" />
Paul Tergat in his role as ambassador for the World Food Programme (&copy; AFP / Getty Images)
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It&rsquo;s largely why he is now such a vocal advocate for helping anyone who is facing difficulties, especially refugees.
&ldquo;Anything can happen to anyone, and circumstances can change all of a sudden, not of your own doing,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We saw what happened in Turkey and Syria recently with the earthquakes. It&rsquo;s why we need to embrace refugees and give them the support they deserve. The most important thing is to give them dignity and treat them as human beings as much as possible.
&ldquo;Any athlete who comes to me, especially refugee athletes, I always tell them: give your best and make the most of the time you have as an athlete. Your talent has been discovered, this is not an accident &ndash; you have something special. Make sure you believe in yourself, and take the opportunities you have. The whole world will open up to you; you can be anything you want to be.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/KpCKrunY8Dw" width="800" height="800" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&ldquo;So long as you keep being positive in life &ndash; regardless of where you are &ndash; don&rsquo;t sit down. Take one step at a time, then everything will change. Because every hour, or every other day, or every other week or month, things continue to change. You don&rsquo;t have to go back again; you have to start.
&ldquo;We never knew we we&rsquo;d reach the things we were able to reach,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;But we were able to do that because of a hand someone has given us. And then you can hold out a hand for somebody else. And that is what we&rsquo;re doing in sports: encouraging each and every one without discrimination &ndash; be it culture, colour, race, gender. We don&rsquo;t discriminate in sports, at all.&rdquo;
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

Paul Tergat knows more than a thing or two about cross-country running

Tergat: ‘We must keep moving forward and encourage each other without discrimination’

The&nbsp;World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23 will see more than 400 athletes from about 45 teams compete at Mount Panorama on 18 February.
Here's how you can keep up-to-date with the latest on the World Athletics website, its associated platforms and via a number of broadcasters around the world.
<h2>Where to watch</h2>
The WXC Bathurst 23 will be streamed live in a number of territories on the World Athletics <a href="https://www.youtube.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">YouTube</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> channels.
The livestream will not be available in all territories. To find out where coverage may be broadcast in your country, check the list below. The list is subject to change, and some broadcasters may only show highlights coverage, while others will show the event live. Please check your local listings to find out more information.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%; height: 352px;" border="1">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>Territories</td>
<td>Broadcaster</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Australia</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">SBS VICELAND, beIN SPORTS 2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Balkan countries (Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Slovenia)</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">Arena Sport</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Brazil</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">GLOBO SPORTV2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Canada</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">CBC</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Italy</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">RAI Sport+ HD</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Japan</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">TBS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Kenya</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">KBC</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">New Zealand</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">Sky Sport</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Pan Latin America</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">TYC Sports</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Pan Middle East</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">TBC</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Portugal</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">RTP2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Spain</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">Teledeporte</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Sub-Saharan Africa</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">Supersport (GSL1, LIYU, SSM, VR3, VR3A)</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">Turkey</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">TRT Spor Yildiriz</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">UK</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">BBC red button</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 35%;">USA</td>
<td style="width: 65%;">CNBC / Peacock</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h2>The Inside Track // LIVE</h2>
Don't miss a moment! The World Athletics live results platform offers an enhanced experience for fans looking to follow the action as it happens. Sign up for free and log in to access even more data including a live blog, detailed results, race splits and other real-time updates.
<a href="https://identity.worldathletics.org/registration?source=waw?redirectUrl=https://worldathletics.org/why-register" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up</a> to join the World Athletics Family now so you are ready to follow as soon as the competition starts.
Registering also offers access to <a href="https://worldathletics.org/why-register" target="_blank" rel="noopener">other exclusive content</a>, including the Museum of World Athletics (MOWA), Education Hub, Kids' Athletics and The Inside Track newsletter. <a href="https://worldathletics.org/why-register" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Find out more.</a>
<h2>Website coverage</h2>
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/timetable" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Timetable and results</a> <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/previews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Event-by-event previews</a>
<h2>Stats</h2>
<a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/63eb38b3571c45c13d64a31a.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WXC Bathurst 23 Facts and Figures</a>, edited by Mark Butler <a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/63e570ada305e5445cff23a9.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Entry lists by event</a> <a href="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/document/63eebf18935e19a94dac96b0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Athlete biographies</a> <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/event-calendar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Past editions</a> <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/heritage/news/world-cross-50-ebook-published" target="_blank" rel="noopener">50 Years of the World Cross Country ebook</a>
<h2>Social media</h2>
World Athletics: <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> Local organisers:&nbsp;<a href="wabathurst23" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WABathurst23/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/wabathurst2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>
&nbsp;

Catch all the action from the global competition in Bathurst

How to follow and watch the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23

When Sonia O&rsquo;Sullivan thinks of the World Cross Country Championships, her first thoughts are not of her own considerable achievements at the event, but of the flickering television images she absorbed as a young girl.
&ldquo;The World Cross Country is one of the first international events I remember watching on television,&rdquo; she recalls, &ldquo;and something I always wanted to be a part of.
&ldquo;I remember seeing pictures of the Irish women&rsquo;s team in their green singlets with the Irish shamrock. I dreamed that one day I could be part of that team.&rdquo;
Another childhood image is of John Treacy ploughing through the mud of Limerick&rsquo;s Greenpark Racecourse in 1979 to successfully defend the senior men&rsquo;s title he had won in Glasgow the previous year.
Not just pictures of Treacy, but also of the swarming hordes of Irish spectators following him around the course. At times as he sprinted to victory over the last lap, Treacy was almost swallowed up by this rolling wave of euphoric fans. To this day, there is a vocal contingent of Irish fans who follow the World Cross Country around the world.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ed8576610d474ec15872e3.jpg" alt="Sonia O'Sullivan in the lead pack at the 1997 World Cross Country Championships" />
Sonia O'Sullivan in the lead pack at the 1997 World Cross Country Championships (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
O&rsquo;Sullivan has given them plenty to cheer about, not least with her double victory in the long course and short course races in Marrakech in 1998. It was the first time two distances had been contested at the World Cross, an experiment which lasted eight more years before being abandoned after the Fukuoka 2006 edition.
&ldquo;My greatest memories of the World Cross Country include those great supporters who travel the world dressed head to toe in green and racing around the course waving Irish flags all believing they are pushing the athletes on to great things,&rdquo; says O&rsquo;Sullivan, whose <a href="https://worldathletics.org/heritage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spikes from the 1998 World Cross are displayed in the Museum of World Athletics</a>.
And who&rsquo;s to say that when great things like a ground-breaking double do happen, that such support does not play a part?
Home support was also a factor in O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s final competitive foray in the championships when she returned after the birth of her older daughter to lead Ireland to a team bronze medal in the short-course race in Dublin in 2002.
O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s first World Cross Country appearance was delayed five years. Ireland&rsquo;s senior champion in 1987, she could have been selected for that year&rsquo;s World Cross in Warsaw, but there was no U20 race then for women and a reluctance to see a 17-year-old &ldquo;thrown to the wolves&rdquo; prompted her to miss. That, along with her university commitments, meant her first experience came in Boston in 1992.
Fittingly, Boston has a distinct Irish flavour. It is the US city with the heaviest concentration of citizens of Irish descent. O&rsquo;Sullivan had just completed her college degree at Villanova University, whose many Irish scholarship holders over the years included 1956 Olympic 1500m champion Ronnie Delany.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ed859d610d474ec15872e6.jpg" alt="Sonia O'Sullivan on the podium at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships" />
Sonia O'Sullivan on the podium at the 1998 World Cross Country Championships (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s parents travelled over to watch her race. Add in those travelling Irish supporters and it could almost have been a home event; certainly the next best thing. O&rsquo;Sullivan travelled up to Boston by train and says her seventh place there proved to her that &ldquo;the dream was alive, and I belonged on the world stage.&rdquo;
As well as her contribution to Irish athletics, O&rsquo;Sullivan has played a significant role in numerous Australian cross-country teams, as team coach, mentor and in management roles.
Australia has recognised the importance of cross country in the development of its distance runners, says O&rsquo;Sullivan, and she is confident that contribution on the world scene will pay off in Bathurst.
&ldquo;Some countries have a greater history of cross-country running and appreciate the benefits more than others. Australia knows what is required to attract the best athletes to compete and get as many spectators to come and be part of a great weekend of World Cross Country.&rdquo;
O&rsquo;Sullivan is full of praise for the initiatives adopted by the Bathurst local organising committee to involve the community with a programme of events for schools, club and community runners over three days.
She will be supporting in a tangible manner, too, joining three teammates from her Glenhuntly club in the relay on the morning of the main events. O&rsquo;Sullivan will be running with Anna Munro who, as Anna Thompson, ran the World Cross nine times from 2002 to 2011 and was a member of Australia&rsquo;s bronze medal-winning teams in 2006 and 2008. Olympic marathon runner Kate Smyth is also on the team, along with clubmate Fiona Noble.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m looking forward to it,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Sullivan says.
Even if O&rsquo;Sullivan were not racing, she would be running around.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ed8546610d474ec15872e0.jpg" alt="Sonia O'Sullivan at the 2002 World Cross Country Championships in Dublin" />
Sonia O'Sullivan at the 2002 World Cross Country Championships in Dublin (&copy; Getty Images)
</div>
&ldquo;The World Cross Country is not an event where you sit in the stands,&rdquo; O&rsquo;Sullivan says. &ldquo;You get the chance to run around, find the best vantage points. There&rsquo;s movement on and off the course creating so much energy and buzz. Athletes can be lifted to do great things and hopefully deliver a medal for the host country.
&ldquo;This is the excitement that lifts the sport. The more people we can get on site, on and off the course, the greater and more memorable the event will be for everyone.&rdquo;
O&rsquo;Sullivan says young fans will be excited and inspired by the chance to get up close to the world&rsquo;s best runners.
&ldquo;We need for kids to relate to the athletes. They will see the great Kenyan, Ethiopian and Ugandan runners live and be able to get up close to them.&rdquo;
And to cheer on their local heroes &ndash; such as Stewart McSweyn, Oliver Hoare, Jess Hull and Abbey Caldwell on the relay, plus Jack Rayner and Rose Davies in the senior races. O&rsquo;Sullivan believes the Australians can do well. There is extra pressure at home, but it is a positive pressure.
&ldquo;You feel the excitement of the fans. You feel an obligation to deliver. (As athletes prepare) it&rsquo;s in the back of your mind all the time.
&ldquo;Like an Olympic year, you up your levels a bit more.&rdquo;
O&rsquo;Sullivan is confident fans will love the event, and the chance to see champion distance runners, as much as she does.
&ldquo;I think people will embrace it. It gives them a reason to do something, to be active, to be a part of it.&rdquo;
Len Johnson for World Athletics

When Sonia O’Sullivan thinks of the World Cross, her first thoughts are not of her own considerable achievements

O’Sullivan on the World Cross: ‘This is the excitement that lifts the sport’

<h2 style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-1973" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1973-1982</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-1983-1992" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1983-1992</a> | <a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-1993-2002" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1993-2002</a> | <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-championships/bathurst23/news/series/50-years-world-cross-country-championships-2003-2011" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2003-2011</a> | 2012-2023</h2>
 It was at the Kololo Ceremonial Grounds in the centre of Kampala six years ago that the balance of World Cross Country power began to shift.
Kenya and Ethiopia continued their domination of the senior men&rsquo;s long race at the 2017 edition of the World Athletics Cross Country Championships in the Ugandan capital, between them taking a sweep of the individual medals and claiming the coveted team prize for the 34th time in succession.
There were, however, significant signs of a new force emerging as rivals to the East African &lsquo;Old Firm&rsquo;.
While Ethiopia and Kenya slugged out a close duel for the team title, the former prevailing by 21 points to 23, neighbours Uganda took third spot on home soil with 72 points. It was their third team bronze in the senior men&rsquo;s long course race, having also finished third in Mombasa in 2007 and in Punta Umbria in 2011.
For much of the 9.9km race, a historic home gold appeared to be beckoning for the host nation and for the poster boy of the championships.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ec6a68016c441e8b40bff4.jpg" alt="Joshua Cheptegei in the lead pack at the 2017 World Cross" />
Joshua Cheptegei in the lead pack at the 2017 World Cross (&copy; Jiro Mochizuki)
</div>
On the third of the five laps, Joshua Cheptegei, Uganda&rsquo;s 2014 world U20 10,000m champion, moved to the front and put clear daylight between himself and his rivals. Entering the final circuit, the 20-year-old held a lead of 12 seconds.
Moses Kipsiro, the 2007 world 5000m bronze medallist, had finished a close second behind Ethiopia&rsquo;s Gebre Gebremariam in Amman in 2009 and placed third in Bydgoszcz a year later, but Uganda had yet to strike individual or team gold in the senior men&rsquo;s race.
But just as the packed patriotic crowd was getting ready to hail a momentous home victory, the wheels started to come off the Cheptegei chariot. Big time.
The heat, the humidity and the mistimed effort exacted a heavy toll. With one kilometre remaining, his lead was down to seven seconds. Sniffing an opportunity to hold on to the title, Geoffrey Kamworor swept past the flagging Ugandan and onwards to victory.
His Kenyan teammate Leonard Barsoton came through for silver and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Abadi Hadis for bronze. Cheptegei faded to 30th, his sole consolation a bronze team medal.
As it happened, there had been scenes of Ugandan jubilation after the preceding race, the U20 men&rsquo;s 7.9km.
Jacob Kiplimo, a bronze medallist on the track over 10,000m at the previous year&rsquo;s World Under 20 Championships, powered clear on the last of the four laps to earn the host country their first ever gold medal at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ec6a8d016c441e8b40bff7.jpg" alt="Jacob Kiplimo leads the U20 men's race at the 2017 World Cross in Kampala" />
Jacob Kiplimo leads the U20 men's race at the 2017 World Cross in Kampala (&copy; Jiro Mochizuki)
</div>
&ldquo;Yes! Yes! Yes!!&rdquo; exclaimed the delighted Kiplimo, who was congratulated by Uganda's President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni. &ldquo;I always thought I could win. When I broke away going into the last lap, I knew I was going to do it.&rdquo;
Uganda was pipped to bronze in the team section by Eritrea, but eight previous third-placed finishes in the U20 men&rsquo;s race between 2000 and 2011 &ndash; along with team bronze medals in the senior women&rsquo;s race in 2015 and U20 women&rsquo;s contest in 2010 and 2017 &ndash; pointed towards the senior breakthrough that was to fully materialise at the next edition of the championships.
In Aarhus in Denmark in 2019, the Kenyan-Ethiopian hegemony was rent asunder. For the first time since the 1980 championships at Longchamps Racecourse in Paris, when England won, the senior men&rsquo;s team prize went to a country other than the two established East African cross-country giants.
Cheptegei led the changing of the guard on a dashingly different Danish course, which featured a steep climb up to and down from a grass section on top of the Moesgaard Museum.
Two years on from his last-lap heartache on home ground, which he followed with a silver medal run in the 10,000m at the 2017 World Championships in London, the 22-year-old savoured the sweet taste of atonement in the aftermath of a momentous race for his country.
Prominent from the challenging uphill start, Cheptegei was one of four contenders who pulled clear of the field after Kiplimo pushed the pace on the second steep climb up on to the museum roof. Entering the fourth lap, Eritrea&rsquo;s Aron Kifle dropped back, leaving Cheptegei and Kiplimo battling it out with defending champion Kamworor.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63eaeab6a86cc11950b98e59.jpg" alt="Joshua Cheptegei leads at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus" />
Joshua Cheptegei leads at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
Kiplimo forged ahead on the penultimate museum climb and, at just five months past his 18th birthday, looked set to become the youngest ever winner of the senior race as he approached the final circuit. However, Kamworor chased hard on the uphill start of the final lap and closed the gap on the ensuing descent. Unfortunately for the Kenyan, he had drawn Cheptegei with him.
The Ugandan pair proceeded to pull away, and on the final ascent to the museum rooftop Cheptegei launched the decisive attack, opening a gap of five metres that he doubled on the descent. He crossed the line with a four-second advantage, Kiplimo claiming the silver and Kamworor the bronze &ndash; ahead of the fourth-placed Kifle and Ethiopia&rsquo;s world indoor 3000m silver medallist Selemon Barega in fifth.
&ldquo;This win is so special for me, having lost in 2017,&rdquo; Cheptegei reflected. &ldquo;On the final lap I knew a Ugandan would win. The question was which one it would be. I felt strong but I knew there was still work to be done.&rdquo;
Kiplimo had gone into the race on a nine-month, nine-race winning streak. Cheptegei had undergone a troubled build-up, having suffered a lingering knee injury while walking into a door at home and injured his back in a car accident three months previously.
&ldquo;My lower back had a lot of pain,&rdquo; Cheptegei said. &ldquo;My confidence was knocked. It had a lot of effects. I was not in my best shape.&rdquo;
Still, he was feeling on top of the world after leading his country to their momentous team triumph. With Thomas Ayeko seventh and Joseph Ayeko 10th, Uganda brought to an end the run of 34 victories by the neighbouring big boys of the global distance running game: 24 Kenyan triumphs, 10 Ethiopian.
They finished 20 points clear of Kenya, with Ethiopia a further three points behind in third.
Having gained redemption for his Kampala meltdown, Cheptegei set his sights on global track glory. &ldquo;My ambition is to dominate the track for the next five to six years,&rdquo; he declared.
In the intervening four years, the world cross country champion has collected two world 10,000m titles, an Olympic 5000m gold medal and an Olympic 10,000m silver. He has also become the fastest 5000m and 10,000m runner of all time, eclipsing Kenenisa Bekele&rsquo;s world records with times of 12:35.36 in Monaco and 26:11.00 in Valencia in the pandemic days of 2020.
In doing so, Cheptegei has picked up the trailblazing baton carried by the original golden boy of Ugandan track and field. At the Munich Olympic Games in 1972, John Akii-Bua became the country&rsquo;s first Olympic champion and world record-holder, shattering David Hemery&rsquo;s 400m hurdles mark with a stunning 47.82, the first sub-48-second clocking in history.
Stephen Kiprotich won Olympic marathon gold in London in 2012 and Peruth Chemutai claimed the Olympic 3000m steeplechase crown a week before Cheptegei&rsquo;s 5000m triumph in Tokyo in 2021, so Uganda is gathering serious momentum as a global athletics force.
At the 2017 World Cross Country Championships, Uganda placed third in the U20 women&rsquo;s team contest. In Aarhus in 2019, in addition to Cheptegei and Kiplimo finishing one and two and leading the senior men&rsquo;s team to victory, Oscar Chelimo won individual bronze in the U20 men&rsquo;s race and led the team to the silver medal.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63ec6bf6016c441e8b40bffa.jpg" alt="Peruth Chemutai and Rachael Chebet in action in Aarhus" />
Peruth Chemutai and Rachael Chebet in action in Aarhus (&copy; Jiro Mochizuki)
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Uganda&rsquo;s senior women, meanwhile, got on the team podium in third place with 36 points &ndash; the best score ever for a bronze medal at the World Cross. Chemutai and Rachael Chebet both placed in the top five, while two other compatriots made it into the top 14.
Like Cheptegei, Kiplimo has also made a big mark since Aarhus. He has gained Olympic and world bronze medals on the track and a world half marathon title on the road. He has also set a half marathon world record, clocking 57:31 in Lisbon in November 2021.
Aged just 15 when he represented his country at the Rio Olympics in 2016, running in the 5000m heats, Kiplimo is still only 22. Cheptegei is hardly an old stager himself, at 26.
Uganda&rsquo;s dynamic duo have years ahead of them yet in what is proving to be a golden era for the New Firm of East Africa. 
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Fifth decade of World Cross action</h2>
<h3>2013 Bygdoszcz, Poland</h3>
At 19 years 266 days, Kenya&rsquo;s Japhet Korir eclipsed Kenenisa Bekele as the youngest ever winner of a senior men&rsquo;s title. The US finished second to Ethiopia in the men&rsquo;s team section, with Kenya in third &ndash; the first time Kenya had been beaten by a nation other than their neighbours since 1982. Kenya&rsquo;s Emily Chebet repeated her 2010 senior women&rsquo;s success on the same course.
<h3>2015 Guiyang, China</h3>
Kenyan Geoffrey Kamworor became the third man to graduate from U20 to senior men&rsquo;s champion, following Bekele and Gebre Gebremariam. Kamworor&rsquo;s teammate Agnes Tiprop, 19, became the youngest senior women&rsquo;s champion since Zola Budd in 1985. At 15, Letesenbet Gidey became the youngest ever U20 women&rsquo;s winner.
<h3>2017 Kampala, Uganda</h3>
Irene Cheptai led an unprecedented Kenyan sweep of the first six places in the senior women&rsquo;s race. Even with Genzebe Dibaba on the anchor leg, Ethiopia had to settle for silver behind Kenya in the inaugural mixed relay. Gidey successfully defended the U20 women&rsquo;s title.
<h3>2019 Aarhus, Denmark</h3>
Kenya&rsquo;s world 5000m champion Hellen Obiri made history as the first woman to win senior world titles on the track indoors and out and at cross country. Fantu Worku anchored Ethiopia to mixed relay gold, while Kenya&rsquo;s Beatrice Chebet captured the U20 women&rsquo;s title in a photo finish.
<h3>2023 Bathurst, Australia</h3>
For the first time in World Cross Country history, the event heads to Australia. More than 400 athletes from around the world will descend on Mount Panorama in Bathurst for the elite races in what promises to be another enthralling edition of the global event.
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Simon Turnbull for World Athletics Heritage

Bathurst legacy inspires Pacific island athletes

Hull delivers masterclass for Australia at World Cross Country Championships

Kiplimo succeeds compatriot Cheptegei as world cross-country champion in Bathurst

Chebet gets gold after dramatic end to senior women’s race in Bathurst

Kipkirui claims U20 men’s crown in competitive contest