In one of the closest finishes in the history of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Kenya's world U20 5000m champion Beatrice Chebet added the world U20 cross country title to her growing list of honours.
After just under six kilometres of running, the first three athletes - Chebet and Ethiopian pair Alemitu Tariku and Tsigie Gebreselama - crossed the line together, all being awarded the same time of 20:50. It looked like Chebet had broken the tape first and she raised her arms in celebration, only for Tariku to initially be announced as the winner. However, after analysis of the photo finish, the result was revised with Chebet finally confirmed as the winner.
&ldquo;At first I was disappointed, as I was told I was third and I thought I had won, but now I am happy," said the 19-year-old, who was the dominant winner at last month's Kenyan trials. "I felt strong when I sprinted to the line. My country will be happy and celebrating that I have won.&rdquo;
&ldquo;The competition was fast and I worked hard. I am proud,&rdquo; said Tariku, who was making her debut at the World Cross Country Championships.
&ldquo;We are pleased to win medals,&rdquo; Gebreselama added.
It didn't take long for Ethiopia and Kenya to stamp their authority at the head of the field. However, even though the two distance running powerhouses had won all of the 26 previous women's U20 team titles, Uganda made it clear that they were not going to let their East African rivals have it all their own way, also packing well at the front of the field from the outset.
At the end of the first two-kilometre lap reached in 7:14, it was Uganda's Sarah Chelangat who was leading the pack, the 17-year-old who took gold in the 3000m/cross country event at the Youth Olympic Games last year. However, she was closely followed by Tariku and Jackline Rotich, who would eventually place ninth, heading a leading group of about 20, which also consisted of four Japanese athletes, an early indication that they would be in the hunt for a team medal.
Up the hill on the second lap, the leading group was comprising of Kenyans, Ethiopians and one Ugandan, with a small gap to two Japanese and further back, European U20 champion Nadia Battocletti leading the European charge. Chelangat was still at the head of affairs, closely tracked by Tariku and Gebreselama, with Chebet in fourth and Ethiopia's 2018 African U20 cross country champion Girmawit Gebrizihair, who also won the Ethiopian Trials last month, in fifth.
As they approached the water pit on the third and final lap, Chelangat was still in the lead, but Chebet was looking relaxed in second while the lead group was reduced to six and soon to five, as Kenyan Betty Kibet dropped off with about one kilometre to go.
As they approached the final straight, Chebet and Tariku attempted to make a break but Chelangat and Gebreselama were not giving up, with Chelangat finishing one second adrift with 20:51 in fourth, having made much of the running.
As had been expected, the innovative, man-made course provided its share of challenges.
&ldquo;It was tough with the obstacles,&rdquo; confirmed Chebet. &ldquo;There was uphill, downhill, water, mud, sandpits. It was challenging, it was competitive and it was about perseverance. I enjoyed it.&rdquo;
For the Ethiopians, they were unanimous about the most difficult element of the two-kilometre loop &ndash; the mud. &ldquo;It was a hard course, with the uphill, but the mud was the hardest bit,&rdquo; they both agreed.
Placing second, third, fifth and backed up by Mizan Alem in seventh, Ethiopia took the team title, edging another step closer to Kenya in the team stakes, with Kenya boasting 15 titles and Ethiopia now 12 titles.
Kenya took silver, with Japan edging Uganda by one point in the race for bronze, led by Ayuka Kaama and Ririka Hironaka in 14th and 15th.
Emily Moss for the IAAF

In one of the closest finishes in the history of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, Kenya's world U20 5000m champion Beatrice Chebet added the world U20 cross country title to her growing list of honours.

U20 women's report: Chebet prevails in dramatic finish in Aarhus

A storming final leg run from Fantu Worku in the mixed relay at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 gave Ethiopia the first gold medal of the day.
For the first three legs, Ethiopia and Kenya had been locked in a neck-and-neck battle with Morocco sitting in a distant third place. But everything changed on the final leg.
Steeplechase specialists Conseslus Kipruto of Kenya and Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco were the standout names on the first leg. But El Bakkali, the world steeplechase silver medallist, couldn&rsquo;t match his arch rival on the twists, turns and hills on the 2.1km loop and started to lose contact after he first few minutes.
But just at the point when many expected Kipruto to make his move, it was little-known Ethiopian Kebede Endale who forged ahead, charging up the roof of the Moesgaard Museum to open a gap on the world and Olympic steeplechase champion.
Having covered his stage in 6:01, Endale handed over to compatriot Bone Cheluke with a three-second lead over Kenya, who had Jarinter Mawia Mwasya on their second leg. 
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Bone Cheluke of Ethiopia in action in the mixed relay at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019</div>
&nbsp;
Cheluke, who ran in the mixed relay in Kampala two years ago, maintained her team&rsquo;s advantage over Kenya after covering her 2km leg in 6:47. USA&rsquo;s Shannon Osika, a 4:06.17 1500m runner, overtook Morocco&rsquo;s second-leg runner, Kaoutar Farkoussi, and briefly joined Cheluke and Mwasya at the front. She was unable to maintain that pace, though, and faded in the closing stages of her leg and handed over in fourth place overall behind Morocco.
World 1500m champion Elijah Manangoi took up the running for Kenya on the third leg, while 2012 world indoor 1500m champion Abdelaati Iguider carried Morocco&rsquo;s hopes of gaining on Ethiopian leader, 2017 African U18 800m silver medallist Teddese Lemi. 
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Elijah Manangoi and Taddese Lemi in the mixed relay at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019</div>
&nbsp;
Iguider managed to make up a bit of ground during the first half of his 2km leg, but Lemi and Manangoi still had a comfortable lead. Having expended perhaps a bit too much energy, Iguider then faded slightly towards the end of his stage. Up in front, Lemi maintained Ethiopia&rsquo;s lead and handed over to 2016 world U20 1500m silver medallist Worku with a two-second advantage over Winfred Mbithe.
As their teammates had done on the first three stages, Worku and Mbithe ran close together for much of the final 2.14km leg. But with 23 minutes on the clock, Worku started to pull ahead to finally create some distance between Ethiopia and Kenya.
Her move was a decisive one and she seemed untroubled by the incline and decline of the Moesgaard Museum. It was a different story for Mbithe, however, who was caught by Morocco&rsquo;s world and Olympic 1500m finalist Rababe Arafi.
As she turned the bend coming off the roof and negotiated the final turn into the home straight, Worku forged ahead to give Ethiopia the gold in 25:49. Way behind, Arafi was next to cross the finish line in 26:22 with Kenya following in 26:29.
Little more than an hour later, Morocco was disqualified for handing over the timing wristband before the start of the exchange zone. They later filed an appeal against the decision and it was accepted, meaning they held on to their silver medal.
&ldquo;It was a very hard course, and especially the roof was a challenge,&rdquo; said Worku. &ldquo;But I was very happy for the downhill parts, and it was good we had tested the route before the race. After last year's silver medal, we went home to train hard, and we are very proud to claim the gold today.&rdquo;
USA, clocking 27:01, finished fourth ahead of Uganda (27:35) and Spain (27:47).
Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF

A storming final leg run from Fantu Worku in the mixed relay at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 gave Ethiopia the first gold medal of the day.

Mixed relay report: Ethiopia gains revenge on Kenya in Aarhus

Join cross country legends Paul Tergat, Lynn Jennings, John Treacy and Paula Radcliffe as well as some of this year's competitors including Joshua Cheptegei, Courtney Frerichs and Matt Baxter for the inaugural episode of the World Athletics Club. 
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Join cross country legends Paul Tergat, Lynn Jennings, John Treacy and Paula Radcliffe as well as some of this year's competitors including Joshua Cheptegei, Courtney Frerichs and Matt Baxter for the inaugural episode of the World Athletics Club.

World Athletics Club – Aarhus

The IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 will be live streamed on the IAAF's YouTube channel.

Watch the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019

Otmane Nait-Hammou is a native Moroccan&nbsp;now living in Stockholm. Jamal Abdelmaji Eisa Mohammed is from Sudan, currently living in Israel. The pair's very different life paths will converge tomorrow here in Aarhus where they'll make their debut as teammates on the Athlete Refugee Team.
"Just to be here, is something very special," said Nait-Hammou, who began running in his hometown of Agadir at the urging of a friend. "I've never been in a world championship. It'll be exciting to feel being on the start line - and to also come to the finish line. And to do my best, of course."
Hammou said he made the difficult decision to leave his homeland in 2015 for a host of complicated reasons which finally conspired to force him into a search of a place where he simply "better fits". He found that through sport.
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Athlete refugees Otmane Nait-Hammou and Jamal Abdelmaji Eisa Mohammed in Aarhus with IAAF President Sebastian Coe</div>
&nbsp;
"I really feel that I fit well with running, with sport."
Mohammed was 10 when his father was killed by the Janjaweed militia during a raid of their village of Barde in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region in 2003. It was burned to the ground before the militia departed. Eight years later he finally fled the violence, heading first to Egypt before crossing the Sinai Desert on foot to Israel.
The reasons people have to leave home are as numerous as there are people forced to flea.
He eventually found work in Tel Aviv, earning a modest living while helping to support his mother, two brothers and a sister who are living in a refugee camp back home.
But Mohammmed also considers himself a full-time runner, a passion he discovered in 2014, when his best friend urged him to join the Hasimta Alley Runners club. About a year ago, he began a seven-day-a-week training regimen that's beginning to bear fruit. Running for his Tel Aviv club, Mohammmed finished 40th in his European Champion Clubs Cup debut in 2017, 30th in 2018 and 22nd in the 2019 edition on 3 February in Albufeira, Portugal. Nineteen days later he improved his road PB to 29:37 when he finished second in the 10km in Tel Aviv.
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Athlete refugees Otmane Nait-Hammou and Jamal Abdelmaji Eisa Mohammed in Aarhus</div>
&nbsp;
"There is a big difference between the European club championships and the world championships, but it's ok, I will do my best here."&nbsp;
Nait-Hammou doesn't have quite the same credentials, but he's closing in. He began running in 2012 at 17, and in recent years, like Mohammmed, balances his running with a full-time job. And, also like his teammate, he arrives in the best form of his life, on the heels of a 30:30 10km PB he ran in Paris last weekend.
"I plan to do my best, of course," Nait-Hammou said. "But just to be in the same race with these great runners that I only know from watching them, it will be a very special feeling."
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF

Otmane Nait-Hammou is a native Moroccan now living in Stockholm. Jamal Abdelmaji Eisa Mohammed is from Sudan, currently living in Israel. The pair's very different life paths will converge tomorrow here in Aarhus where they'll make their debut as teammates on the Athlete Refugee Team.

Mohammed and Nait-Hammou ready for their Athlete Refugee Team debut

The innovative nature of the course at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, taking in the grassy roof of Moesgaard Museum, the hilly surroundings, a mud pit and a section of water as part of the two-kilometre loop, is going to make it a true test of strength. Therefore, the appeal of the Aarhus course to steeplechasers is perhaps no coincidence.
Two steeplechasers who will be on the start line tomorrow are world 3000m steeplechase silver medallist Courtney Frerichs of the USA and European U23 steeplechase champion Anna Emilie Moller, the latter leading the hopes for the home nation.
For 21-year-old Moller, it is perhaps of little surprise that the biggest attraction is the opportunity to run in a global championships on home soil. Coming from Copenhagen, approximately three hours from Aarhus, Moller is excited that her family and supporters will be out on the course to watch her in an event in which she made her debut two years ago in Kampala aged just 19. Since then, the Danish athlete has gone from strength to strength, most recently winning the European U23 cross country title in Tilburg in December.
Now based in the UK for much of the year having started studying at St Mary's University in Twickenham last September, Moller enjoys training with the strong university squad and running round Bushy Park and Richmond Park, two of London's Royal Parks. As for the similarities between steeplechase and the course in Aarhus 2019, Moller said, &ldquo;Steeplechase is all about breaking rhythm and both are tough events.&rdquo;
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Anna Emilie Moller wins the U23 race at the European Cross Country Championships</div>
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Frerichs agrees that the nature of the course could play to the strengths of steeplechasers.
&ldquo;I ran the course yesterday and I think it's going to be a real equaliser. Often steeplechasers are at the shorter end of the distance spectrum for cross country races, as we only race 3000 metres, but this course is so tough it could be a great leveller between us and the longer distance specialists. Steeplechase is all about how you react to barriers, to fallers and how you re-focus,&rdquo; she explains.
The American is also quick to point out that having seen and tried the course in real life, it is harder than she and her team mates had expected.
&ldquo;You can't see it from the videos and pictures,&rdquo; she said, perhaps referring in part to the deceptively steep nature of the hill over the Moesgaard Museum, which runners in the senior races will ascend five times.
With all its physical challenges, Frerichs thinks the toughest test is going to come mentally.
&ldquo;I've been taking advice from Shalane Flanagan, who thinks it is the toughest course she has ever seen. Therefore, I think it's going to be a more of a mental battle. We have been speaking about using energy efficiently, putting consistent effort up the hill and staying mentally focused.&rdquo;
Having come through the NCAA collegiate system in the United States and being on the winning University of New Mexico team at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in 2017, the discipline's team element is another appeal for Frerichs.
&ldquo;The NCAAs was a real highlight for me,&rdquo; Frerichs said. &ldquo;I love the fact that in cross country the whole team has the same goal.&rdquo;
The main goal for Frerichs is to use the race to prepare for the track.
&ldquo;Its an innovative course, so it will be an experience to remember. Hopefully we can all use it as a springboard to the track.&rdquo;
Emily Moss for the IAAF

The innovative nature of the course at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, taking in the grassy roof of Moesgaard Museum, the hilly surroundings, a mud pit and a section of water as part of the two-kilometre loop, is going to make it a true test of strength. Therefore, the appeal of the Aarhus course to steeplechasers is perhaps no coincidence.

Steeplers Moller and Frerichs ready to face the Aarhus course challenge

At tonight&rsquo;s IAAF Dinner ahead of tomorrow&rsquo;s IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, IAAF President Sebastian Coe announced the winner of the competition to design the IAAF World Athletics Heritage Plaque.
Coe also took the opportunity of an enjoyable evening in Aarhus City Hall to confirm the award of plaques to six more recipients whose historic contribution to athletics were recognised in the &lsquo;competition&rsquo; category.
<h3>Brazilian winner</h3>
The winner of the public competition to design the plaque, which Coe opened when he launched the new award on 2 December 2018, is Fernando Silva, a 27-year-old resident and recreational runner from the Brazilian city of Manaus.
The main oval of the design represents the &lsquo;global&rsquo; sport of athletics, while the gold colour of that ring represents &lsquo;excellence&rsquo;. The six bright modern colours surrounding the main gold oval stand for the &lsquo;universality&rsquo; of athletics as represented by its six continental areas and the six core event groups: sprints, hurdles &amp; relays; middle/long distance; combined events; jumping; throwing; &lsquo;out of stadia&rsquo; (cross country, mountain, road, trial and ultra running and race walking).
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Fernando Silva, winner of the IAAF World Athletics Heritage Plaque design contest</div>
&nbsp;
<h3>Entries from across four continents</h3>
Coe commented: &ldquo;the concept of the World Athletics Heritage Plaque was very well received when we announced the project and the first dozen recipients in December. I&rsquo;m delighted to confirm that the design competition attracted a high standard of entries across four continents. Now that we have a winner, we have moved an important step towards the first unveilings of plaques around the world in 2020.&rdquo;
The plaque design will now undergo some further work ahead of manufacture at the end of the year.
Fernando Silva, who wins a trip for two to the IAAF World Athletics Championships Doha 2019, commented: &ldquo;I&rsquo;m extremely proud and honoured that my design has been recognised and that it will be permanently displayed in athletics locations around the world.&rdquo;
<h3>'The folklore of sport'</h3>
Six more plaque locations, all &lsquo;out-of-stadia&rsquo; competitions, were confirmed by Coe, bringing the total number of recipients so far honoured to 18.
Map: <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/heritage/plaque-locations">iaaf.org/heritage/plaque-locations</a>
Appropriately, given the reason for tonight&rsquo;s IAAF Dinner, three of the new plaque recipients are historic cross country competitions. The English Cross Country Championships (founded 1877) and the USA Cross Country Championships (1889) are two of the oldest national championships in the multi-terrain discipline and hold an aura which only comes from more than 100 years of running heritage. Italy&rsquo;s annual Cinque Mulini (1933), an IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting, was also recognised for being an emblematic competition which over the decades has attracted many of the world&rsquo;s best middle and long distance runners, including Coe.&nbsp;
In terms of road running, no other marathon race has a longer continuous tradition in the world or represents such history as does the BAA Boston Marathon (1897).
The &lsquo;Athens Marathon The Authentic&rsquo; (1972) might be a youngster by comparison to Boston, having only have been founded less than 50 years ago but, running on the original course from Marathon to Athens, its roots stretch back to Pheidippides&rsquo; famous run in 490BC.
When it comes to race walking, there are few competitions to match the stature and history of the meeting in La Coruna, Spain. The annual Gran Premio Cantones de La Coru&ntilde;a (1986), which hosted the IAAF World Cup in 2006, is a beacon of excellence and the oldest IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting.
&ldquo;Tonight, we have recognised competitions which rest at the very heart of the history of athletics,&rdquo; said Coe. &ldquo;These six races have over the decades caught the imagination of athletes and fans alike, for whom they are high up in the bucket list of athletics events which must be experienced. Some elements like Boston Marathon&rsquo;s Heartbreak Hill have become part of the folklore of world sport and have set these events apart as truly appropriate Heritage locations.&rdquo;
List of plaques: <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/heritage/plaque">iaaf.org/heritage/plaque</a>
IAAF

At tonight’s IAAF Dinner ahead of tomorrow’s IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, IAAF President Sebastian Coe announced the winner of the competition to design the IAAF World Athletics Heritage Plaque.

World Athletics Plaque design unveiled, six new locations announced

Start lists and biographies for the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 are now available.
The PDF files can be viewed and downloaded from the <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships#Information" target="_blank" rel="noopener">'information' section of the World Cross Country Championships mini-site</a>.
The <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships-aarhus-6265/timetable/byday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">start lists are also available in the timetable/results section</a>.
<h3> Timetable and distances</h3>
11:00 mixed relay 8240m (1 lap of 2100m + 2 laps of 2000m + 1 lap of 2140m)
11:35 U20 women 5856m (1 lap of 1972m + 1 lap of 1872m + 1 lap of 2012m)
12:10 U20 men 7728m (1 lap of 1972m + 2 laps of 1872m + 1 lap of 2012m)
13:00 senior women 10,240m (1 lap of 2100m + 3 laps of 2000m + 1 lap of 2140m)
14:00 senior men 10,240m (1 lap of 2100m + 3 laps of 2000m + 1 lap of 2140m)

Start lists and biographies for the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 are now available.

Start lists and biographies available for IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019

<h3>TV Media Sport will distribute all IAAF World Athletics Series events to sub-Sarahan Africa between 2019 and 2023</h3>
 Kenya, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo are among the <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/news/iaaf-news/world-cross-country-championships-broadcast-i" target="_blank" rel="noopener">14 African countries able to watch</a> the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark free to air this weekend thanks to deals completed by TV Media Sport (TVMS) and the IAAF.
TVMS reached an agreement with ESPN Media Distribution to represent the IAAF for the distribution of free-to-air media rights for all events in the IAAF World Athletics Series 2019-2023 in 48 territories of sub-Saharan Africa.
TVMS is the exclusive licensor to interested free-to-air African broadcasters of the best events in the sport of athletics, including the 2019, 2021 and 2023 IAAF World Championships, and will distribute the high quality live international world feed produced by IAAF Productions, with English and French commentaries as well as a daily highlights programme focusing on the performances of African athletes at the IAAF World Championships.
TV Media Sport&rsquo;s CEO H&eacute;di Hamel is &ldquo;thrilled by this agreement that will bring back the best athletics action in most African TV Homes. TVMS will enable broadcasters to offer their audience top quality sports programming with many African athletes on the podium and this starts right now with 14 countries across Africa showing what is being described as one of the most exciting and challenging cross country courses for a decade at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. We continue to work with other countries in sub-Saharan Africa and hope to add them ahead of the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Doha later this year.&rdquo;
Commenting on the appointment, IAAF Director or Broadcast James Lord said: &ldquo;This is an excellent partnership and we have been impressed with how TVMS has hit the ground running. Africa&rsquo;s love of athletics is well known and we are delighted to bring the live action of our World Championships free to air across the continent, starting with the IAAF World Cross Country Championships this weekend.
&ldquo;These championships will also see IAAF Productions debut as host broadcaster for an IAAF World Championships event, filming, commentating, providing graphics, highlights and distributing the live action from this exciting course to our rights-holding broadcasters for the very first time,&rdquo; added Lord. &ldquo;We are expecting a record number of broadcasters to be taking our host broadcast feed and are looking forward to working with them as head towards providing the host broadcast production for the IAAF World Championships in Doha later this year.&rdquo;&nbsp;
In its first host broadcast for a World Championship event, IAAF Productions will have 19 cameras positioned at the key sections of the course to capture all the action as the race unfolds, through the mud and sand pits, up and down the grassed roof of the Moesgaard Museum and through the Viking zone and the gauntlet of cheering fans in the hospitality tent. Just over 6km of cable will carry the action to the on-site production suite and out to 70 countries around the world.
The new agreement with TVMS does not include any rights in South Africa or the Pay-TV rights across sub-Saharan Africa. ESPN Media Distribution retains these rights and will continue to market these in the region. Athletics fans in South Africa will be able to watch the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships through the livestream on the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/iaafathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">IAAF&rsquo;s YouTube channel</a>.
TV Media Sport is an international agency based in Paris and specialised on the African continent dealing with media rights, media management, organisation and marketing of international and regional sporting events. TV Media Sport has been the partner of all major sports federations and institutions such as the IOC, FIFA, UEFA, IAAF, and many others.
ESPN Media Distribution represents an extensive portfolio of sports content including live sports, original studio programming and award-winning films to broadcasters through dedicated media distribution teams in locations across the globe.
IAAF Productions is a joint venture company between IAAF and ITN Productions established in January 2018 to deliver host broadcasting services of the IAAF&rsquo;s World Championships and World Indoor Tour events.
IAAF

Kenya, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo are among the 14 African countries able to watch the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark free to air this weekend thanks to deals completed by TV Media Sport (TVMS) and the IAAF.

 IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 to be broadcast free-to-air across sub-Saharan Africa thanks to TVMS partnership

<h4>Welcome to our comprehensive lead-in coverage to the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, which, for the next 48 hours or so will be your one-stop shop for all things Aarhus as we count down to the start of the 43rd edition of the IAAF's oldest world championships.</h4>
This page will be updated regularly throughout the day today, tomorrow and right up until the gun sounds the start of the first race on Saturday morning, incorporating news gathered from our team on the ground in Aarhus and from IAAF, local organisers' and athletes' social media channels.
To get up to speed, why not start with a look at our <a href="https://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/news/world-cross-country-aarhus-2019-previews">race-by-race previews</a>?
And don't forget: the championships will be broadcast in more than 60 countries and territories (<a href="https://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-cross-country-championships/news/world-cross-country-championships-broadcast-i">an updated list is here</a>) and available via <a href="http://bit.ly/Aarhus2019Livestream">live stream</a> on our YouTube channel to everyone else, ensuring that the event will be viewable by fans in just about every corner of the planet.
Updates: Emily Moss/<a href="https://twitter.com/EmilyMoss2">@EmilyMoss2</a>, Jon Mulkeen/<a href="https://twitter.com/Statman_Jon">@Statman_Jon</a> and Bob Ramsak/<a href="https://twitter.com/BobRamsak">@BobRamsak</a>
&nbsp;

Welcome to our comprehensive lead-in coverage to the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019, which, for the next 48 hours or so will be your one-stop shop for all things Aarhus as we count down to the start of the 43rd edition of the IAAF's oldest world championships.

Latest updates - IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019

Capturing the attention of 200 primary school students is a difficult task. Holding their attention can be an impossible chore.
It wasn&rsquo;t a problem though for cross country legends Lynn Jennings, John Treacy and Paul Tergat this morning during a presentation at the packed auditorium of the Aby Skole school in Aarhus, Denmark. After all, a trio that&rsquo;s combined to win ten individual world cross country titles between them shouldn&rsquo;t have much of a problem entertaining a roomful of pre-teens.
For Tergat, whose status in the sport rose to that of legend after winning five successive world cross country titles, all it took was his answer to a young boy who asked him to say something in &ldquo;African&rdquo;.
&nbsp;
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Former world cross country champions Lynn Jennings, Paul Tergat and John Treacy during a presentation for primary school students from the Aby Skole school in Aarhus, Denmark</div>
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&ldquo;Say something in Swahili, you mean,&rdquo; he said, laughing, before offering a loud heartfelt greeting: &ldquo;Hujambo!&rdquo;
That&rsquo;s &ldquo;hello&rdquo; in the Kenyan&rsquo;s native Swahili, a word that would be the refrain for much of the rest of the morning, both at the presentation at the school, and then again later, when Jennings, Treacy, legendary coach Jack Waitz and Carsten J&oslash;rgensen, a former world orienteering champion from Denmark, led a five-station cross country training workshop with the students -- again, nearly 200 in all-- at a nearby park.
&ldquo;Sport,&rdquo; Tergat said, &ldquo;brings people together. Even when we don&rsquo;t speak the same language, our common language is sport.&rdquo;
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Students listen to world cross country champions Paul Tergat, Lynn Jennings and John Treacy at the Aby Skole school in Aarhus, Denmark</div>
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Tergat told the students of how important sport has been in his life, especially in his formative years, well before he became one of the most recognised runners on the planet.
&ldquo;Sport can help you in every way. It helps you focus better in the classroom, which then helps you all through life.&rdquo;
For Jennings, all it took to win over the crowd was to pass around one of the three successive gold medals she earned from 1990 to 1992. And then sharing what&rsquo;s driven her passion for running, especially cross country.
&ldquo;Running is primal,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;Running in nature is the most natural thing you can do. I won many times on the track, but accomplishments at the World Cross Country Championships always meant the most to me.&rdquo;
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Primary school students at the Aby Skole school in Aarhus, Denmark look at one of Lynn Jennings' world cross country championships gold medals</div>
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Like Tergat, Jennings said running has offered life lessons that extend well beyond sport. So does losing.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I won many races, but I didn&rsquo;t win even more. And I learned much more from the races I didn&rsquo;t win.&rdquo;
Treacy, whose successful title defence before a home crowd in Limerick led the top of the national news programmes for an entire week, spoke of the camaraderie he believes is inherent to the sport.
"One thing about the sport is that we're all great pals," he said. "Because we all know how hard it is to run cross country and to train hard. So I think that's what brings us all together."&nbsp;
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Students from the Aby Skole school in Aarhus, Denmark participate in a cross country workshop with five-time world cross country champion Paul Tergat</div>
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The training tips continued at the nearby Gjellerup Forest Park where the students practiced uphill and downhill running (courtesy of Jennings), Fartlek training (courtesy of Waitz), managing curves and shifting terrain (with Treacy), relay running (J&oslash;rgensen) and running for records (with former marathon world record holder Tergat).&nbsp;
As the session wound down, many of the aspiring runners were clearly tired, but a few, perhaps driven by Treacy's earlier parting words, were clearly eager to take on a few more rounds through the forest under the bright early afternoon sun.
"Go out, enjoy it, and set your own goals for yourself," Treacy said. "Not everyone can be a champion but everyone can beat their personal best. So pursue it and enjoy it."
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF

Capturing the attention of 200 primary school students is a difficult task. Holding their attention can be an impossible chore.

Cross Country legends inspire aspiring pre-teen runners in Aarhus

Ahora mismo me siento la persona m&aacute;s feliz del mundo. Ya puedo morir en paz. Gracias. Eskerrik asko.
&ldquo;Right now I feel like the happiest person in the world. I can die in peace. Thank you. Thank you.&rdquo;
A career at its zenith; a life-long passion distilled in a moment. But these words were not spluttered by some victorious athlete as they stepped euphorically from the ring, track or podium. They were, in fact, posted by the Spaniard Felix Sanchez Arrazola on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq-nggEB1zt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">his Instagram account</a>, shortly after he won the award for Athletics Photograph of the Year at the IAAF Athletics Awards 2018.
His image of Selemon Barega winning the Cross Internacional Juan Muguerza in Elgoibar, Spain, was selected ahead of three other short-listed images as the best of the year at the event in Monaco in December. For Sanchez, 40, who hails from a village outside of Bilbao, in the Basque region of northern Spain, it was recognition in a field that has been a passion for life.
&ldquo;I began running at the age of eight, after seeing that my older brother ran and did athletics,&rdquo; he explains. &ldquo;From that moment athletics became the sport that I was most passionate about.&rdquo;
Besides competing, among his earliest athletics memories is watching the iconic 1500m final at the 1984 Olympics, &ldquo;when Seb Coe beat Steve Cram and the Spanish runner Jose Manuel Abascal&rdquo;.
As much as Sanchez would dream of replicating those heroics on the track, his path was altered by an injury to his foot, leaving him unable to train, compete and hang out with his athletics buddies. But he had an idea.
&ldquo;I had always been interested in the photographs in the athletics magazines I bought when I was a kid, and I loved looking at the pictures," he says. "I had a bedroom full of pictures of my idols.
&ldquo;In order to stay close to the sport from which the injury had separated me, I began taking photographs.&rdquo; 
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Selemon Barega after winning at the Cross Internacional Juan Muguerza</div>
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<h3>Story in an image</h3>
As someone who understands the sport from a competitive perspective, Sanchez &ndash; a regular contributor to Runners World, Marca, As, El Mundo &ndash; aims to recreate the unique emotions athlete experience within the images he captures.
&ldquo;For me, photographs which contain gestures of effort, delight, fatigue, or containing a story, are images that always have a lot of impact,&rdquo; he explains.
&ldquo;I always seek to capture the moments that, for the athletes, are part of their story.&rdquo;
These qualities scream out from his muck-caked winning image, which he calls the &ldquo;photograph of my career&rdquo;.
&ldquo;The reaction of Selemon was something that poured straight from his heart,&rdquo; says Sanchez. &ldquo;It was a moment special to cross country, plastered and covered in mud. To kneel down and give thanks to his god with his arms, it was a personal act, one that he has done all his life.&rdquo;
Besides its visual impact, Sanchez&rsquo;s photograph of Barega, a world U18 and U20 champion, was portentous. It was taken at the start of a year in which the Ethiopian would unveil his talent on the senior stage with devastating effect: following world indoor silver in March, the recently-turned 19-year-old won the 5000m at the IAAF Diamond League final, clocking a world U20 record of 12:43.02 and moving to fourth on the world all-time list.
This weekend Barega will line up in the senior men's race at the IAAF/Mikkeller World Cross Country Championships Aarhus 2019 where he will start as one of the favourites.
When Sanchez was revealed as the winner in Monaco, the heady moment was made more poignant, as Barega himself skipped on to the stage to embrace the man on the other side of the lens. With the announcement, his image went global.
&ldquo;The reaction in Spain to this photo, and above all else to winning the IAAF prize, has been overwhelming. Since the day after the IAAF Awards the phone, social media, the press&hellip; it&rsquo;s been a genuine frenzy,&rdquo; he says.
&ldquo;Dedicated photography media selected the image as one of the best of the year, and for me this is such an honour.
&ldquo;I began in athletics age eight: this prize is the best I could received in my life; no prize will ever surpass the emotional significance of that which I experienced that night in Monaco.&rdquo;
Thomas Byrne for the IAAF

Ahora mismo me siento la persona más feliz del mundo. Ya puedo morir en paz. Gracias. Eskerrik asko.
“Right now I feel like the happiest person in the world. I can die in peace. Thank you. Thank you.”

WORLD ATHLETICS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

First global senior title secured, Cheptegei now wants more

Having conquered the cross, Obiri turns focus back to track

Senior men's report: Cheptegei dethrones Kamworor and leads Ugandan 1-2 in Aarhus

Senior women’s report: Dominant Obiri makes history in Aarhus

U20 men’s report: Mengesha leads Ethiopian 1-2 in Aarhus