<a href="#FR">Fran&ccedil;ais</a>As the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 drew to a close on Saturday (28), thoughts started to turn to the next edition of the championships in Kampala in 2017.The Ugandan capital will host the global cross-country event in two years&rsquo; time, a decade after it was last staged in Africa. It will be the first time an IAAF World Athletics Series event has been held in Uganda.At the post-championships banquet at the Guiyang Eco Conference Centre, IAAF President Lamine Diack handed the IAAF flag to the Kampala 2017 local organising committee, marking their position as hosts of the next IAAF World Cross Country Championships.The Ugandan delegation included Jennifer Musisi, executive director of the Kampala Capital City Authority; Charles Bakkabulindi, minister of education and sports and chairman of the LOC; and Dominik Otucet, president of Uganda Athletics and vice chairman of the LOC.The event has already got the thumbs up from 2015 senior men's champion Geoffrey Kamworor, who hails from the Kenyan town of Eldoret, just 350 kilometres from the Ugandan capital."If I am healthy, I certainly want to defend my title two years time. It will be a great event to have these championships in East Africa again (after the 2007 championships were held in the Kenyan city of Mombasa)," said Kamworor."I hope we get many Kenyans coming to support us in 2017 as Uganda is our neighbour and almost like a brother," he added.IAAF<hr /><a name="FR"></a><h3>Guiyang transmet le t&eacute;moin &agrave; Kampala A la cl&ocirc;ture, samedi (28), des Championnats du monde de Cross de l'IAAF, l'attention a commenc&eacute; &agrave; se focaliser sur la prochaine &eacute;dition de la manifestation, &agrave; Kampala en 2017.La capitale ougandaise va en effet accueillir ces championnats mondiaux dans deux ans, soit une d&eacute;cennie apr&egrave;s leur derni&egrave;re organisation sur le continent africain. Il s'agira en outre de la premi&egrave;re fois qu'une &eacute;preuve de la S&eacute;rie mondiale de l'athl&eacute;tisme sera tenue en Ouganda. Lors du banquet suivant les mondiaux de Guiyang, dans le Centre Eco Conference de la ville, le pr&eacute;sident de l'IAAF, Lamine Diack, a remis la banni&egrave;re de l'IAAF aux repr&eacute;sentants du Comit&eacute; d'organisation local (COL) de Kampala 2017, symbolisant ainsi le passage de t&eacute;moin entre les deux villes. La d&eacute;l&eacute;gation ougandaise &eacute;tait notamment compos&eacute;e de Jennifer Musisi, directrice d&eacute;l&eacute;gu&eacute;e de l'Administration de Kampala, de Charles Bakkabulindi, ministre de l'Education et des sports ougandais et pr&eacute;sident du COL, et de Dominik Otucet, pr&eacute;sident de la f&eacute;d&eacute;ration d'athl&eacute;tisme ougandaise et vice-pr&eacute;sident du COL.La comp&eacute;tition b&eacute;n&eacute;ficie d'ores et d&eacute;j&agrave; du soutien du champion du monde seniors 2015, Geoffrey Kamworor, originaire de la ville kenyane d'Eldoret, situ&eacute;e &agrave; tout juste 350km de la capitale ougandaise."Si je suis en bonne forme &agrave; ce moment-l&agrave;, je chercherai bien entendu &agrave; d&eacute;fendre mon titre dans deux ans. Ce sera fabuleux de voir les mondiaux renouer avec l'Afrique de l'Est, apr&egrave;s l'&eacute;dition 2007, dans la ville kenyane de Mombasa, a dit Kamworor."J'esp&egrave;re que beaucoup de Kenyans feront le d&eacute;placement pour nous soutenir en 2017, car l'Ouganda est notre voisin, et nous nous consid&eacute;rons pratiquement comme des fr&egrave;res." IAAF</h3>

As the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 drew to a close on Saturday (28), thoughts already turned to the next edition of the championships in Kampala in 2017.

Guiyang passes the baton to Kampala

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 gets under way on Saturday (28) and you can follow all the action on the IAAF website.The IAAF website will bring you <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540/timetable/byday" target="_blank">live results</a> and up-to-the-minute updates on our live blog and <a href="http://twitter.com/iaaforg" target="_blank">IAAF twitter account</a>.Or if you&rsquo;re on the go, you can download the IAAF app (available on <a href="http://www.amazon.com/IAAF-IAAF-org/dp/B00ECCJL66/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1393595528&amp;sr=8-2&amp;keywords=iaaf" target="_blank">Amazon appstore</a>, <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.iaaf.applications.IAAF&amp;hl=en" target="_blank">Google Play</a> or the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/it/app/iaaf.org/id681225974?l=en&amp;mt=8" target="_blank">App Store</a>) to keep updated on all the results from Guiyang.Following our <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540/news/preview" target="_blank">event-by-event previews</a>, there will also be <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540/news/report" target="_blank">reports for every event</a> and a <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540/multimedia" target="_blank">host of images</a> added to the site.If you can&rsquo;t follow the action on TV, you can listen to the <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/radio/broadcast-schedule/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540" target="_blank">IAAF Radio</a> throughout the competition.<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/spikes" target="_blank">SPIKES</a> will add an extra dimension to the IAAF World Cross Country Championships coverage, unearthing stories that you&rsquo;d never hear anywhere else and then sharing them on <a href="http://twitter.com/spikesmag" target="_blank">twitter</a> and the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthleticsClub" target="_blank">IAAF World Athletics Club on Facebook</a>. In the <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-2015-5540/athletes" target="_blank">athletes section</a>, you can filter all the entrants by name, country, discipline or gender.More in-depth information on all the athletes entered can be found in the biographies: <a href="https://iaafmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/competitioninfo/e5939fc8-e615-4e43-a6cb-b30c62d2c6ab.pdf" target="_blank">senior men</a>, <a href="https://iaafmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/competitioninfo/803f5872-56a6-4ab4-bc4f-f843feb4392d.pdf" target="_blank">senior women</a>, <a href="https://iaafmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/competitioninfo/c165a350-b7c2-416e-b79b-ca816d25717c.pdf" target="_blank">junior men</a> and <a href="https://iaafmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/competitioninfo/e8d05fdf-427f-4bf3-8fa2-53426db14042.pdf" target="_blank">junior women</a>.There&rsquo;s also the <a href="https://iaafmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/competitioninfo/a7f6728d-3619-4652-9727-4bfcac244440.pdf" target="_blank">IAAF World Cross Country Championships facts and figures PDF</a>, which contains all the World Cross Country Championships information you will ever need to know.Or if you wanted to step back in time, the <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/history" target="_blank">history page</a> provides links to results for all the past editions of the World Cross Country Championships.IAAF

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 gets under way on Saturday (28) and you can follow all the action on the IAAF website.

Follow all the action online – IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 will be the third time the championships have been staged on the continent of Asia, and the fact that all three editions have come in the past decade shows the growing importance and rising profile of not only cross-country running but athletics in general within Asia.Following in the footsteps of the Japanese city of Fukuoka in 2006 and the Jordanian capital Amman in 2009, Guiyang also has the distinction of being the first Chinese host. While the city might not be the epicentre of world distance running, there is no denying that the city is still home to a burgeoning &ndash; and still expanding &ndash; running community&ldquo;The Chinese Athletics Association (CAA) has staged dozens of national and international events in Guiyang,&rdquo; said Wang Yuxiang, the Deputy Mayor of the Guiyang Municipal People&rsquo;s Government.&ldquo;Guiyang for 44 years in a row has staged a long-distance running event on the first day of each New Year,&rdquo; he added with considerable pride, referring to a local event which outdates even the IAAF World Cross Country Championships for antiquity. &ldquo;Last June, Guiyang also launched the first ever international marathon event. We attracted some 10,000 runners from 24 countries, including professional and amateur runners. We are going to have more marathon events so we can create a brand for the event in Guiyang.&rdquo;The city&rsquo;s largely benign year-round climate and good air quality are no doubt compatible with recreational running, plus the city&rsquo;s greenery and open spaces &ndash; such as the Guangshanhu Wetland Park where the professional athletes have been training in the days leading up to the race &ndash; provide miles of traffic-free roads and paths for runners.&ldquo;I think Guiyang is a unique city," added Wang. "We enjoy beautiful mountains, good water and a positive ecology. We also have a world-class venue for cross-country running with good facilities."<h3>Good times in Giuyang </h3> &ldquo;We have hosted more than 10 national championships and one Asian Cross Country Championships. We have good conditions for hosting it. IAAF officials have visited Guiyang many times in the preparations and they all feel Guiyang enjoys a good environment, and comfortable climate.&rdquo;Recreational runners will be able to pound the same course as the elite runners on Saturday, as the organisers made a clever decision to stage 2km and 4km mass participation races at the start of Saturday&rsquo;s programme before the official opening ceremony. This follows on from the innovations at the 2014 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships where a mass participation race was staged in conjunction with the elite race. &ldquo;To make the general public more into it, we have a range of amateur running events so public can experience cross-country running,&rdquo; said Du Zhoacai, the Director of the Chinese Athletics Association. &ldquo;It will be very important for the popularity and development of cross-country running in China.&rdquo; On the competitive side, Chinese runners have only picked up four medals at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. Three of those medals came in the women&rsquo;s junior race in 1990 when Liu Shixiang and Yan Qinglan won individual gold and silver, plus team bronze. Du identifies the junior races, and especially the women&rsquo;s contest, as one where the hosts could leave an impression on home soil.&ldquo;We have sent some young but outstanding athletes and we hope we will have a good performance in the junior team race,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;In the senior team, we are trying to improve the quality. You can see we have 30 athletes, including some athletes for the future. They are the talents and hopes of the future for the Chinese team.&rdquo;Steven Mills for the IAAF

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 will be the third time the championships have been staged on the continent of Asia, and the fact that all three editions have come in the past decade shows the growing importance and rising profile of not only cross-country running but athletics in general within Asia.

Guiyang capitalises on being IAAF World Cross Country Championships host

Seventeen years on from completing her historic long and short-course double at the 1998 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Sonia O&rsquo;Sullivan took to the stage as an IAAF ambassador at this year&rsquo;s pre-event press conference in Guiyang, China, on Friday (27).
Having seen cross country at its peak growing up and experiencing it herself, O&rsquo;Sullivan knows the event faces challenges as its popularity, including among athletes, seems to be on the wane.
&ldquo;I think, for me, the World Cross Country Championships will always be special because when I was growing up it was something I watched on TV,&rdquo; recalled O&rsquo;Sullivan.
&ldquo;We had people like Zola Budd, Ingrid Kristiansen, Grete Waitz. They were all role models for me, people I would want to emulate.
&ldquo;I tried to run the World Cross several times and I was lucky in a way that I had a good team to compete with. As an Irish team we won the bronze medal twice, in 1997 (in the long course event) and 2002 (in the short course).&rdquo;
<h3>Diaries point to double delight </h3>
 Of her memorable solo double in the Moroccan city of Marrakech, the Irish runner remembers the importance it played for the rest of her career.
&ldquo;In 1998, the World Cross Country became really important to me because in 1996 I didn&rsquo;t do too well at the Olympics; in 1997 things didn&rsquo;t work out too well either, so I had to go back to basics.
&ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t important to win the race (in 1998), but it was important to go out and do my best. If anyone was going to beat me, they had to be better than me on the day and, as it turned out, they weren&rsquo;t!&rdquo;
But looking at O&rsquo;Sullivan&rsquo;s training diaries from the time, it becomes clear that her success did not come by chance.
&ldquo;Even when I look at it now (her training plan for the month of March in 1998), I am surprised that you would actually train that much in that month, but then also would continue to train that hard because cross country wasn&rsquo;t the end of the road because that would just lead in to the summer season.
&ldquo;I think the biggest thing we have to do right now is to get into the minds of athletes to show cross country can lay the foundation for success later on in the year, that it is important and it has a big impact on the rest of the season.
&ldquo;You get something out of it, it is a bit of a testing point for you and it is something you can&rsquo;t get in training.
&ldquo;We have to look at what we have now, and what we don&rsquo;t have, and we don&rsquo;t have a lot of European athletes competing, so we need to create ways to make it important for athletes.
<h3>Continental challenge</h3>
 &ldquo;One way it could be done is if you look at World Cross Country Championships, we have individuals, you have countries but you could also have continents and make it important for athletes to compete for their continents within the same events.
&ldquo;You would have only one athlete from each country on the continent, you can&rsquo;t have the whole Kenyan team there representing Africa, or the whole American team representing Americas, and it would make it a little bit more interesting, because you would be part of a bigger team.
"It was only just this morning that I came up with the idea, so we probably need to develop it a bit more, but something like that,&rdquo; she explained, an idea that got acknowledgement from the IAAF President Lamine Diack, who was listening with rapt attention in the first row of the audience.
O&rsquo;Sullivan, an astute observer of championship events, believes that the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 will have both an impact and a legacy.
&ldquo;I went for a run this morning and down at the park (where the athletes are training) and the local people seem to be really interested.
&ldquo;They&rsquo;re all laughing and smiling and taking photos, so they are definitely aware that there&rsquo;s an event going on in town and they are very curious about all the runners running around in their track suits.
&ldquo;Hopefully many of them will come out to watch the races,&rdquo; added the two-time world champion in the discipline. "The interest in the city seems pretty high, so hopefully it will attract a lot of spectators, because ultimately that&rsquo;s what you need to make it exciting for everybody."
Later on Friday, O'Sullivan travelled to the venue for this year's championships, mingling with the teams at the official course inspection.
As a star attraction and idol to many, she was on hand to dispense advice and was an on-hand mentor to junior athletes from several nations.
Michelle Sammet for the IAAF

Seventeen years on from completing her historic long and short-course double at the 1998 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Sonia O’Sullivan took to the stage as an IAAF ambassador at this year’s pre-event press conference in Guiyang, China, on Friday (27).

IAAF ambassador Sonia O'Sullivan is a committed cross country fan

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 pre-event press conference took place at the Guiyang Olympic Stadium, China, with four of the expected leading participants in the senior races facing the media on Friday (27).Kenya&rsquo;s 2010 and 2013 world cross-country champion Emily Chebet was in positive spirits despite a mixed season so far.Having only finished 14th at the Kenyan trials last month, Chebet admitted: &ldquo;At the nationals, my body did not feel well but I have recovered now and am feeling confident.&ldquo;Participating in two World Cross Country Championships has taught me a lot in athletics and has helped me become a better runner.&ldquo;In 2010 I was very lucky to win gold. It gave me the experience I needed to compete for gold again in 2013, so I am hoping to repeat it tomorrow.&rdquo;Local hope Ding Changqin cannot wait to get on the course.The Chinese athlete recorded a 2:26.54 personal best at the Chongqing Marathon last Sunday and is now looking forward to competing in front of a home crowd.&ldquo;I know the area really well and got a lot of training done here, so I have this as an advantage and I am hoping that I will be in good shape tomorrow,&rdquo; said Ding.<div class="quote">I used to run cross country more than the marathon and I am very strong. I really love cross country so I don't think I will have any difficulty (after running a top class marathon just a week ago). I think I am capable of doing both well. </div>&ldquo;Hopefully, I can use my home land as a lucky place for me to give a good performance and produce a good result tomorrow. A lot of my friends are volunteers and will be watching the competition. I hope I can bring my best performance for them. Many of my friends and family will be watching as well.&rdquo;Of course, the IAAF World Cross Country Championships isn&rsquo;t the only major championship to be held in China this year, the IAAF World Championships will be held in Beijing this coming August and is approaching fast. &ldquo;I feel very honoured that during my career, China is hosting a World Championships and also a World Cross Country Championships in one year,&rdquo; added Ding. &ldquo;I hope we can have great performances on behalf of China and look forward to seeing (athletes from around the world) all here at the course.&rdquo;On the men&rsquo;s side, Kenya&rsquo;s 2011 junior winner and world half-marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor was joined by three-time US champion Chris Derrick, who finished 10th in 2013, helping the USA take the team silver medals.&ldquo;This is a world championship, so it&rsquo;s not a competition between me and (Kenyan trials winner Bedan) Karoki or any other Kenyan," said Kamworor. "I will do the best I can to get the best result possible, but I can&rsquo;t single out a specific competitor because I am trying to focus on my own race.&ldquo;We will do everything we can to improve on the (team) bronze position from the last World Cross Country Championships.&rdquo;Derrick and his compatriots defeated Kenya in 2013 but was careful with his predictions this time around.&ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to be tough to replicate what we did last year simply because so many things went well (in 2013). I think it&rsquo;s rare for things to go so well two times in a row, but I think the team is still strong."More on Chris Derrick&rsquo;s comments at the press conference can be read <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/news/news/chris-derrick-guiyang">here</a>.Michelle Sammet for the IAAF

The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 pre-event press conference took place at the Guiyang Olympic Stadium, China, with four of the expected leading participants in the senior races facing the media on Friday (27).

Athletes' press conference – IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015

<a href="#FR">Fran&ccedil;ais</a>The IAAF announced that SINOLUBE (Sinopec Lubricants) will be the official lubricant of the IAAF at a press conference in the Chinese city of Guiyang on Friday (27).The announcement took place one day ahead of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015, the first World Cross Country Championships to be held in China.&ldquo;It gives me great pleasure to join with our partners SINOPEC to mark this important moment on the road to the IAAF World Championships, Beijing 2015,&rdquo; said IAAF President Lamine Diack.&ldquo;In 2010, Sinopec became an official partner of the IAAF and its World Athletics Series of events which includes the IAAF World Cross Country Championships here in Guiyang and this August&rsquo;s track and field championships in Beijing.&ldquo;Sinopec is an official IAAF partner in the category of oil and natural gas, and today we are delighted to announce SINOLUBE as the official lubricant of the IAAF.&ldquo;Sinopec began its partnership with the IAAF at the end of 2010 as a partner of that year&rsquo;s Continental Cup and as the title sponsor of the IAAF World Championships. It has long been active in sports development in China.&ldquo;The Sinopec Group has since 2008 been the world&rsquo;s third largest oil refiner and last year was ranked number three in the Fortune 500 List of the world&rsquo;s top companies. &ldquo;The IAAF is delighted to be associated with such a prestigious partner,&rdquo; added Diack."In a year that sees our IAAF World Athletics Series begin and end in China, our partnership with Sinopec gives added value to the world athletics family and strengthens athletics presence in China and Asia.<div class="quote">&ldquo;IAAF championships like those in Guiyang and Beijing would not be possible without the support of our official partners. The IAAF offers its global sponsors the global attraction of the sport of athletics. With more than 200 national federations, the IAAF has a worldwide reach great than that of the United Nations. It&rsquo;s the only sport that can bring 213 countries together.</div> &ldquo;The IAAF World Championships in Beijing will be the biggest sporting event in the world in 2015 and nine days of competition, involving about 2000 athletes, will be broadcast to an accumulated audience of six billion people around the world.&rdquo;&ldquo;On behalf of the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA), I want to extend our appreciation to Sinopec, we have had great cooperation with them and it is a win-win situation for everyone,&rdquo; added CAA Director Du Zhaocai.&ldquo;For many years Sinopec has been working very hard to promote sport and with just 148 days to the opening ceremony of the IAAF World Championships in Beijing this collaboration between the IAAF and SINOLUBE will be very helpful to one of the top three sports events in the world,&rdquo; added Du.&ldquo;This a new milestone in cooperation between the IAAF and SINOLUBE as well as recognition by the IAAF of SINOLUBE&rsquo;s brand and quality. It also marks the global expansion ambitions of SINOLUBE through the involvement of with the IAAF World Championships,&rdquo; commented SINOLUBE Party Secretary Gou Lianjie.&ldquo;In terms of athletics, the vibrancy, passion and positive health values that athletes disply is very much in line with SINOLUBE&rsquo;s mission to promote excellence and a positive spirit.&ldquo;SINOLUBE also actively promotes the importance of a healthy lifestyle and through its efforts we hope more people enjoy athletics and enjoy the benefits of a healthy and happy lifestyle,&rdquo; added Gou, who revealed he was also a regular recreational runner.<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="225" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MdtzBbzR4gU?rel=0&amp;showinfo=0" width="400">&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br class="k-br" /&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;</iframe>IAAF <hr /><a name="FR"></a><h3>Sinolube, lubrifiant officiel de l'IAAF
</h3> L'IAAF
 a annonc&eacute; que SINOLUBE (Sinopec Lubricants) va &ecirc;tre le lubrifiant 
officiel de l'IAAF au cours d'une conf&eacute;rence de presse organis&eacute;e dans la
 ville chinoise
 de Guiyang, vendredi (27).Cette annonce a &eacute;t&eacute; faite &agrave; la veille des

Championnats du monde de Cross de l'IAAF, Guiyang 2015, les premiers championnats mondiaux de la discipline organis&eacute;s en Chine.
"J'ai
 grand plaisir &agrave; me joindre &agrave; nos partenaires SINOPEC pour marquer cette
 &eacute;tape importante sur la route qui nous m&egrave;ne aux Championnats du monde 
de l'IAAF, P&eacute;kin 2015, a d&eacute;clar&eacute;
 le pr&eacute;sident de l'IAAF, Lamine Diack."En
 2010, Sinopec est devenu un partenaire officiel de l'IAAF et de la 
S&eacute;rie mondiale de l'athl&eacute;tisme, s&eacute;rie qui comprend les Championnats du 
monde de cross de l'IAAF, ici &agrave; Guiyang,
 ainsi que les mondiaux d'athl&eacute;tisme de cet &eacute;t&eacute; &agrave; P&eacute;kin. "Sinopec
 est un partenaire officiel de l'IAAF dans la cat&eacute;gorie p&eacute;trole et gaz 
naturels, et aujourd'hui nous sommes ravis de pouvoir annoncer que 
SINOLUBE est le lubrifiant officiel
 de l'IAAF. &ldquo;Sinopec
 a entam&eacute; son partenariat avec l'IAAF fin 2010, en tant que sponsor de 
la Coupe continentale de cette ann&eacute;e-l&agrave;, et aussi de sponsor-titre des 
Championnats du monde de l'IAAF.
 Le groupe est actif de longue date dans le secteur du d&eacute;veloppement du 
sport en Chine.
&ldquo;Depuis
 2008, le groupe Sinopec est le troisi&egrave;me raffineur de p&eacute;trole le plus 
important au monde, et l'an dernier il a &eacute;t&eacute; class&eacute; troisi&egrave;me dans la 
liste "Fortune 500" qui r&eacute;pertorie
 les plus grandes soci&eacute;t&eacute;s mondiales. "L'IAAF est ravie d'&ecirc;tre associ&eacute;e &agrave; un partenaire aussi prestigieux, a ajout&eacute; Diack."Lors
 de cette ann&eacute;e 2015, qui voit notre S&eacute;rie mondiale de l'athl&eacute;tisme 
s'ouvrir et se cl&ocirc;turer en Chine, notre partenariat avec Sinopec offre 
une excellente valeur ajout&eacute;e &agrave;
 la famille mondiale de l'athl&eacute;tisme, et renforce la pr&eacute;sence de 
l'athl&eacute;tisme en Chine et en Asie."Des
 championnats de l'IAAF tels que ceux de Guiyang et P&eacute;kin ne pourraient 
se faire sans le soutien de nos partenaires officiels. L'IAAF offre de 
son c&ocirc;t&eacute; &agrave; ses sponsors mondiaux
 l'attrait universel du sport de l'athl&eacute;tisme. Avec plus de 200 
f&eacute;d&eacute;rations nationales, l'IAAF a une port&eacute;e mondiale plus &eacute;tendue que 
celle des Nations Unies. L'athl&eacute;tisme est le seul sport pouvant 
rassembler 213 pays.
"Les
 Championnats du monde de l'IAAF de P&eacute;kin seront la plus importante 
manifestation sportive au monde en 2015, et les neuf journ&eacute;es de 
comp&eacute;tition, impliquant pr&egrave;s de 2000 athl&egrave;tes,
 seront diffus&eacute;es &agrave; une audience cumul&eacute;e de six milliards de 
t&eacute;l&eacute;spectateurs dans le monde entier.
"Au
 nom de l'Association chinoise d'athl&eacute;tisme (CAA), je tiens &agrave; signifier 
notre grande appr&eacute;ciation &agrave; Sinopec; le niveau de coop&eacute;ration entre nous
 est excellent, et nous avons
 l&agrave; une situation dans laquelle tout le monde est gagnant, a ajout&eacute; le 
directeur de la CAA, Du Zhaocai."Cela
 fait de nombreuses ann&eacute;es que Sinopec travaille dur pour promouvoir le 
sport, et &agrave; tout juste 148 jours de la c&eacute;r&eacute;monie d'ouverture des 
Championnats du monde de l'IAAF &agrave;
 P&eacute;kin, cette collaboration entre l'IAAF et Sinolube contribue tr&egrave;s 
fortement &agrave; cette manifestation, qui est parmi les trois plus grandes 
comp&eacute;titions sportives de la plan&egrave;te.""Il
 s'agit l&agrave; d'un nouveau jalon marquant le partenariat entre l'IAAF et 
Sinolube, ainsi qu'une reconnaissance par l'IAAF de la marque et de la 
qualit&eacute; de Sinolube, au travers
 de son implication avec les Championnats du monde de l'IAAF", a 
comment&eacute; le secr&eacute;taire du parti de Sinolube, Gou Lianjie."Le
 dynamisme, la passion et les valeurs positives attenant &agrave; la sant&eacute; que 
v&eacute;hiculent l'athl&eacute;tisme sont des valeurs totalement align&eacute;es avec la 
mission de Sinolube de promouvoir
 l'excellence et un &eacute;tat d'esprit positif.&ldquo;Sinolube
 s'adonne &eacute;galement activement &agrave; la promotion d'un mode de vie sain, et 
nous esp&eacute;rons que ces efforts vont amener plus de personnes encore &agrave; 
appr&eacute;cier l'athl&eacute;tisme et
 &agrave; b&eacute;n&eacute;ficier d'un mode de vie sain et heureux, a ajout&eacute; Gou, qui a 
r&eacute;v&eacute;l&eacute; s'adonner lui-m&ecirc;me r&eacute;guli&egrave;rement &agrave; la course &agrave; pied.
IAAF

The IAAF announced that SINOLUBE (Sinopec Lubricants) will be the official lubricant of the IAAF at a press conference in the Chinese city of Guiyang on Friday (27).

SINOLUBE is the official lubricant of the IAAF

After helping the USA to their first team medal since 2001 at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships two years ago, Chris Derrick hopes those championships in Poland marked, &ldquo;an upswing, rather than a peak&rdquo; of his country&rsquo;s current purple patch at cross country. Derrick also finished 10th individually on the snow and slush in Bydgoszcz and he credits that team performance &ndash; where the USA stunningly just edged out cross-country superpower Kenya for the team silver medal &ndash; as an important step in his development as a professional runner.&ldquo;When I grew up, I was a running nerd,&rdquo; said Derrick at the traditional pre-event press conference ahead of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015. &ldquo;I watched a lot of sport and there was a question in my mind as to whether or not I could get to the top of the sport. I think it was very gratifying (to beat the Kenyans) because I felt like I had been in a situation when I was younger where I was looking for something like that to inspire me.&rdquo;Derrick, who improved his 5000m best from 13:29.74 to 13:08.04 in 2013, acknowledged that the team might be weakened by the absence of Ben True, the sixth-place finisher from Bydgoszcz who only finished 11th at the trials, &ldquo;but a second team medal from successive championships remains the goal.&rdquo;&ldquo;With team expectations, to simply get a medal is a huge achievement. Ben [True] didn&rsquo;t qualify for the team which I think hurts our chances. We still have Ryan Vail who was in the top 20 last time and he&rsquo;s very experienced. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to be tough to replicate what we did last time simply because so many things went well. I think it&rsquo;s rare for things to go so well two times in a row, but I think the team is still strong.&rdquo;Derrick&rsquo;s individual racing form doesn&rsquo;t suggest he has a preference as far as underfoot conditions and temperatures are concerned. Since running so well in Bydgoszcz at the last championships, Derrick has claimed the past two US domestic titles in warm conditions at altitude in Boulder. He started 2015 with a clear-cut win on an archetypal European-style cross-country course in Edinburgh, an IAAF Cross Country Permit Race, at the start of the year.<div class="quote">&ldquo;I like whatever Geoffrey doesn&rsquo;t like!&rdquo; he joked on his preference, referring to Kenya&rsquo;s 2011 junior champion Geoffrey Kamworor, who was sitting to his right at the press conference and who is tipped to be one of the favourites for a medal.</div>If he could choose, a churned-up course not too dissimilar to Bydgoszcz would be his course of choice as an individual, plus to the strengths of the US team as a collective.&ldquo;I feel pretty strong on soft surfaces, and anything that makes it more of a strength race. I think the US team overall prefers muddier tougher courses rather than a firm, flat course,&rdquo; said Derrick, which he believed was a key factor in why they performed so well in 2013. &ldquo;By the time the senior men&rsquo;s race rolls around, I think the course might be to our advantage.&rdquo;With rain forecast for the Guizhou provincial capital on Saturday, Derrick and the US team might get their wish. As an individual, Derrick didn&rsquo;t outline any specific goals but he has put together a good block of training since the start of the year, and believes he is in better shape than he was two years ago.&nbsp; &ldquo;My current fitness is really good,&rdquo; remarked Derrick, whose best time over 10,000m of 27:31.38 dates back to 2012. &ldquo;Training has gone well and (I&rsquo;ve had) a lot of good workouts. I&rsquo;ve probably jumped up in fitness from previous years, and I think I&rsquo;ve benefited from staying healthy. I think I&rsquo;m at a time in my career where each year I train healthy, I am set to make another jump. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d say my confidence is pretty high. I think in Edinburgh, I wasn&rsquo;t very fit because I had some injuries, but by the time I ran at the US Championships, I felt I was very strong and I am hoping to test myself against a very good field tomorrow.&rdquo;Steven Mills for the IAAF

After helping the USA to their first team medal since 2001 at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships two years ago, Chris Derrick hopes those championships marked, “an upswing, rather than a peak” of his country’s current purple patch at cross country. 

Course conditions could play to Derrick’s strengths in Guiyang

IAAF President Lamine Diack faced the media at the traditional pre-event press conference for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Friday (27).Below are extracts from his speech welcoming one and all ahead of what will be the last IAAF World Cross Country Championships he will attend in his current role, as he will step down as president in August.&ldquo;The IAAF competition programme in 2015 begins and ends in China. The IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 are the first of four IAAF World Athletics Series events this year which will climax with the IAAF World Championships in Beijing this summer. &ldquo;The IAAF World Cross Country Championships is the oldest IAAF World Athletics Series event having first been celebrated under the IAAF banner in 1973&ldquo;The 41st edition in Guiyang is a truly significant moment for the development of cross-country running, both nationally and internationally. It marks the first time that the championships have ever taken place in China.&ldquo;In fact this will be only the third occasion that the IAAF World Cross Country Championships have been hosted in Asia, following on from the 2006 edition in Fukuoka, Japan and the 2009 celebration in Amman, Jordan.&ldquo;I am highly confident that this will be a very well organised competition. China is a regular and much respected host of IAAF competitions. Also the venue here in Guiyang has since 2000 hosted both Asian and national cross-country championships.&ldquo;Cross-country running is the purest of sporting activities, requiring nothing but courage and determination to succeed. These are characteristics which are at the heart of athletics&rsquo; enduring international appeal.<div class="quote">The IAAF World Cross Country Championships represent the very pinnacle of long distance-running competition. The roll call of past champions reads like a &lsquo;who&rsquo;s who&rsquo; of athletic greatness. </div>"I am therefore especially delighted that Sonia O&rsquo;Sullivan, the double world cross-country champion from 1998 and one of the great legends of cross-country running, is with us in Guiyang. &ldquo;Sonia, as an IAAF ambassador, will help to inspire the current generation the importance and enjoyment of cross country.&ldquo;We are also looking forward to four exciting races on Saturday. The course runs across a horse race circuit, and up and down the steep side of the hill which borders it, and offers a true test of endurance.&ldquo;Emily Chebet returns to defend her senior women&rsquo;s title which she won in Bydgoszcz in 2010 and 2013. And while we can expect the usual battles between Eritrea, Ethiopia and Kenya, the team medals won by Bahrain, Great Britain, Morocco and the United States of America in 2013 proved that you do not have to be East African to succeed at cross-country running.&ldquo;I warmly thank the local organising committee, the Chinese Athletics Association, Guizhou Province and Guiyang, our official IAAF partners and the hundreds of volunteers, without whose support these championships would not be possible. &ldquo;Finally, I wish good fortune to all the runners and look forward to witnessing a great sporting spectacle.&rdquo; IAAF

IAAF President Lamine Diack faced the media at the traditional pre-event press conference for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Friday (27).

President Diack: "Guiyang is a truly significant moment for cross country"

No less than US$280,000 in prize money will be paid out by the IAAF to the leading runners in the two senior races at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Saturday 28 March. At the 41st edition of the championships, but the first to be held in China, a first prize of US$30,000 will be awarded to each individual winner of the men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s senior races, with money available down to sixth place.In total, US$140,000 is on offer for individual prizes.&nbsp; In the team contest in both senior races, there is another prize pool of US$140,000. This is distributed with US$20,000 going to the first team home in each race, descending to sixth place in both races, where the pay out by the IAAF is US$4000. Prize Money (in US$) &ndash; senior men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s races only.* Individual 1st &ndash;&nbsp; 30,000 2nd &ndash; 15,000 3rd &ndash;&nbsp; 10,000 4th &ndash;&nbsp; 7000 5th &ndash;&nbsp; 5000 6th &ndash;&nbsp; 3000Team 1st &ndash;&nbsp; 20,000 2nd &ndash; 16,000 3rd &ndash;&nbsp; 12,000 4th &ndash;&nbsp; 10,000 5th &ndash;&nbsp; 8000 6th &ndash;&nbsp; 4000* No prize money paid for the junior races. The payment of prize money in the senior races is dependent upon the athletes clearing the usual anti-doping procedures. Extensive background information and complete coverage of the 2015 IAAF World Cross Country Championships can be found on our <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships">dedicated competition site</a>.IAAF

No less than US$280,000 in prize money will be paid out by the IAAF to the leading runners in the two senior races at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Saturday 28 March. 

Prize money of US$280,000 – IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015

The Chinese city of Guiyang is ready to welcome more than 400 runners from 51 different countries at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Saturday 28 March. The championships course is located in a mountainous area approximately 30km away from the city and is set in and around a horse racing circuit. It is a facility which has since 2000 hosted Asian and national cross-country championships.The course loop of 2km, combined with the start and finish straights, will make up the following approximate distances for the four races: junior women &ndash; 3 laps, 6km; junior men &ndash; 4 laps, 8km; senior women &ndash; 4 laps, 8km; senior men &ndash; 6 laps, 12km.Full details of the course and its profile can be found in the appendices of the Team Manual, which is available to download in both English and French from <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships" target="_blank">the dedicated competition mini-site</a>. <h3>How many can run, how many can score?</h3> In all races, IAAF member federations may enter a maximum of eight athletes, but no more than six shall be allowed to start in each race with four to score.The team results are decided by the aggregate of places recorded by the scoring athletes of each team. The team with the lowest aggregate of points will be judged the winner. If a team fails to finish with a complete scoring team, the runners finishing shall be counted as individuals in the race result and be eligible for the individual prize money (senior races only). In assessing the aggregate, no adjustment to the scoring of the finishing teams shall be made in respect of any non-scoring team runners or of individual entries. In the event of a tie, it shall be resolved in favour of the team whose last scoring member finishes nearer to first place.Further background information and complete coverage of the championships, including entry lists, previews, biographies, reports and results, can be found on our <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships" target="_blank">dedicated competition mini-site</a>.IAAF

The Chinese city of Guiyang is ready to welcome more than 400 runners from 51 different countries at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 on Saturday 28 March.

Course and scoring details – IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015

Just like the senior men&rsquo;s race two years ago, which produced more than its fair share of surprises, the event at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 is shaping up to be more than just a straight-forward contest between Ethiopia and Kenya.In 2013, nobody considered that teenager Japhet Korir &ndash; who only squeezed on to the Kenyan team after finishing sixth at the Trials &ndash; would figure in the chase for medals, let alone win the individual title from defending champion Imane Merga from Ethiopia.The Kenyan team in Bydgoszcz was admittedly one of their weaker teams in recent years but it still came as an enormous surprise when the USA &ndash; who hadn&rsquo;t won a team medal since 2001 &ndash; pipped the Kenyans for the team silver medal behind Ethiopia, whose winning score of 38 was one of the highest in recent history.One difference in Guiyang will be the conditions. While freezing temperatures and snow greeted the runners in Bydgoszcz, warm and showery conditions are forecast on Saturday.Responsibility for retaining the men&rsquo;s senior title is set to fall on the shoulders of Bedan Karoki and Geoffrey Kamworor, first and second respectively in oppressive conditions at the Kenyan Cross Country Championships last month.Karoki was one of the in-form runners in 2014 but in a fallow championship year, the Japan-based Kenyan didn&rsquo;t leave as much of a mark as he might have done. Among other accolades, Karoki won the Kenyan cross-country title, went unbeaten on the roads, and set PBs over 5000m and 10,000m.But having retained his domestic cross-country title this winter, the stage is set for Karoki, who hails from the same region in Kenya as five-time winner John Ngugi, to challenge for his first international title on Saturday.Karoki, who finished fifth over 10,000m at the 2012 Olympics, is making his World Cross debut in Guiyang but for Kamworor, his international career began in earnest when he front-ran to the junior title four years ago.Since then, Kamworor has mainly excelled over longer distances, but the strongman of the Kenyan team will be in contention to add this title over 12km to his world half-marathon crown from last year.The third leading contender is another Japan-based runner, Leonard Barsoton. He won silver in the junior race two years ago, and won the African senior title the following year.Despite finishing a lowly 48th at the Kenyan Championships, 2013 champion Korir was still invited to the pre-championships training camp in Kigari by dint of his status as reigning champion. Although he failed to make the final cut and was not part of the team of six that were named to local media as the men who would defend Kenya's honour on Saturday, he was still included in the Guiyang squad as a reserve.World 5000m silver medallist Hagos Gebrhiwet and last year&rsquo;s top-ranked 5000m runner Muktar Edris are the best-known names on the Ethiopian roster but the renowned track exponents, who won gold and bronze in the junior race two years ago, might not be in their best form.At the Ethiopian Cross Country Championships seven weeks ago, they only finished fourth and sixth respectively in a race won by 2:06:17 marathon runner Tamirat Tola.Gebrhiwet&rsquo;s form is difficult to gauge, as he has only raced once since the track season, although Edris did rebound a fortnight later with a win at the famous Cinque Mulini race.Atsedu Tsegay, who broke Haile Gebrselassie&rsquo;s Ethiopian half marathon record three years ago with 58:47, is also on the team.The hosts of the 2017 World Cross Country Championships are taking the dress rehearsal seriously with all of their top runners including Moses Kipsiro and Timothy Toroitich, fourth and fifth two years ago, named on the Ugandan team.However, world mountain-running champion Phillip Kipyeko, who has just moved into the senior ranks, upset Kipsiro at the Ugandan Cross Country Championships last month and looks primed to surprise on a much bigger stage this weekend.Geoffrey Kusuro only finished third in that race but showed great strength with a 59:43 half marathon on the point-to-point Rome-Ostia course. Despite the absence of former champion Zersenay Tadese, the Eritreans will be sending a strong team including reigning bronze medallist Teklemariam Medhin, 2013 seventh-place finisher Goitom Kifle and domestic champion Abrar Osman.Chris Derrick helped the United States to the team silver medal in Bydgoszcz, and the 24-year-old is in better form &ndash; and perhaps better prepared &ndash; than he was in 2013 when he finished 10th.Derrick has won both of his cross-country races this winter, including the US Championships by 30 seconds in Boulder, staged in not too dissimilar conditions to Guiyang.European cross-country champion Polat Kemboi Arikan from Turkey leads his continent&rsquo;s prospects along with renowned cross-country exponent Hassan Chahdi from France, who recently posted a 1:01:38 half marathon debut in Paris.Steven Mills for the IAAF

Just like the senior men’s race two years ago, which produced more than its fair share of surprises, the event at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 is shaping up to be more than a straight-forward contest between Ethiopia and Kenya.

Senior men’s preview – IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015

With 22 years between the youngest and oldest competitors, the senior women&rsquo;s race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 will be a battle between youth and experience.The ability to adapt to the humid conditions in Guiyang will also play a vital role.The past two months haven&rsquo;t been plain sailing for 2010 and 2013 world cross-country champion Emily Chebet. The 29-year-old was only awarded a wildcard at the discretion of selectors, having failed to automatically qualify for the Kenyan team after dropping out of the 8km trials race.But having proven herself reliable on the international cross stage twice already and after taking two podium finishes in Spain earlier this year, it would be foolish to see past last year&rsquo;s Commonwealth 10,000m bronze medallist in Guiyang in her pursuit for a hat-trick of world cross-country titles.Despite the absence of Kenyan champion and two-time junior world cross-country champion Faith Kipyegon, it will be a tough ask for the other 25 countries in the senior women&rsquo;s race to challenge the nation&rsquo;s stranglehold on the trophy, which has remained unchallenged since 2009.Besides Chebet, Agnes Tirop is making her international senior debut, having taken silver in the junior race two years ago. The two-time world junior 5000m bronze medallist also took the junior title at last year&rsquo;s African Cross Country Championships and will play a vital role in Kenya&rsquo;s ambition to win their fifth consecutive team title.The 19-year-old already impressed earlier this season by demonstrating her strength at the Eldoret Discovery Cross Country in January, beating Commonwealth steeplechase champion Purity Cherotich over the 6km distance.Meanwhile, Janet Kisa and Alice Aprot, who finished second and third respectively at the 2014 African Championships, are two more Kenyan forces to be reckoned with.Eager to challenge the East African nation&rsquo;s hegemony in the event will of course be neighbours Ethiopia, with 2011 junior silver medallist Genet Yalew leading the way.Last month the 22-year-old demonstrated her dominance in the mud by leaving behind the likes of world junior 5000m champion Alemitu Heroye and world 10,000m and cross-country bronze medallist Belaynesh Oljira, both of whom also feature on the team.Ethiopian cross trials winner and world steeplechase silver medallist Hiwot Ayalew is missing from the team, focusing on her outdoor season, while Heroye, who dominated the junior race in Addis Ababa, will be forming part of the senior team.Uganda&rsquo;s Juliet Chekwel could be a dark horse in the race for precious metal. The former 10,000m national record-holder bounced back from injury at her national trials last month to upstage a strong field of experienced opponents to win by a 27-second margin. The 25-year-old finished ninth at the 2013 World Cross Country Championships, but will without doubt have her sight set on the event in two years&rsquo; time, when her nation will be hosting the 2017 edition of the championships in Kampala.Hoping to cause an upset in her hometown of Guiyang is China&rsquo;s Ding Changqin. The 23-year-old knows her way around the course and has proven herself on the track in 2014, having taken home silver and bronze medals from last year&rsquo;s Asian Games in Inchon over 10,000m and 5000m respectively.At the 2014 Chinese Cross Country Championships, Changqin won both the short and long course titles with ease, and is hopeful her home advantage will make its presence felt. But the 23-year-old may still be feeling the effects of having run a 2:26:54 marathon PB just six days before the World Cross.Meanwhile, 21-year-old team-mate Zhang Xinyan is making her international senior debut, having swept both of the senior women&rsquo;s titles at this year&rsquo;s national championships in February. With many juniors making the transition to senior in this year&rsquo;s championships &ndash; World University Games 5000m bronze medallist Mai Shoji is leading a Japanese senior team whose average age is 21 &ndash; others will be relying on experience. Spain&rsquo;s Jacqueline Martin, for example, will be making her 14th appearance at the World Cross, 23 years after making her junior debut in Boston 1992.Commonwealth marathon bronze medallist Jessica Trengove of Australia will be competing at her second World Cross, while European cross-country champion Gemma Steel of Great Britain will be lining up for a third time and is set to improve her position from the previous two editions.Having taken team bronze medals in two of the past three editions of the championships and sending an experienced team, the United States, led by national champion Laura Thweatt, can never be discounted. Thweatt, who is making her international debut, is looking to build on a successful 2014 campaign in which she set PBs in every event she contested, from 800m to the half marathon.Michelle Sammet for the IAAF

With 22 years between the youngest and oldest competitors, the senior women’s race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Guiyang 2015 will be a battle between youth and experience.

WORLD ATHLETICS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

After road and cross-country success, Kamworor’s attention turns to track

Kamworor maintains his perfect championship record in Guiyang

Teenage talent Tirop triumphs in Guiyang

Haji defends Ethiopian honour to win junior men's title in Guiyang

Gidey gets Guiyang gold in first international race