NSAF Announces New XC Competition In November

Oct 05, 2020

Following the recent cancellation of Foot Locker Nationals this past week, The National Scholastic Athletic Foundation has announced its intention to step into the cross country arena and offer its own championship race in November.

On Monday, the organization declared a newly-formed cross country race titled the XC Town Meet of Champions and announced plans to hold the 5K race on Nov. 15 at the La Vern Gibson Course in Terre Haute, Indiana.

This comes just a week after the NSAF announced a newly-named indoor championship planned for March of 2021 at the Ocean Breeze Track and Field Facility in New York, which will compete with the other competing national championship, New Balance Indoor Nationals.

While the NSAF XC Meet will offer a new event for athletes in the United States, it won't be the only competition set for this fall. The Amateur Athletic Union Cross Country National Championships are also set for December in Tallahassee, Florida, and will also feature a handful of age group races.

NSAF's event will offer more than just two championship races featuring high school athletes. The Meet of Champions event will feature 12 races and will include competitions down to freshman-class races and events tailored to middle school athletes.

Two NSAF-led events, indoor nationals and outdoor nationals, were also canceled in 2020 due to cautions over COVID-19.

The meet is being constructed by meet director Kristi Rieger.

"We are thrilled to be able to hold this event at a venue like LaVern Gibson, with such a great tradition and with the help of such experienced staff and officials on the ground," Rieger said. "The fact that they've been working with COVID-19 guidelines already this fall is extremely valuable."

The new event is being sponsored by The Garrett Companies, a development, construction and management company based in Indiana.