Cross country runners head to Edinburgh
The 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships take place in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh on March 30th 2008, when the world’s greatest cross country runners and thousands of supporters will gather in Scotland’s inspiring capital.The Championships mark the 30th anniversary of the last World Cross Country Championships to be hosted in Scotland, the 6th ever IAAF World Cross Country Championships, held in Bellahouston Park, Glasgow, on Saturday March 25th 1978.
On this occasion it is hoped that the continued popularity of cross country is celebrated by Edinburgh playing host to a record number of entrants (currently 72) from every continent – and a crowd of up to 10,000 - in the weekend’s showcase event, shown live by BBC television.
VisitScotland Area Director for Edinburgh, Ben Carter, said; “This event underpins that Edinburgh isn’t just a great capital – it’s also a world class city for hosting major events. Edinburgh provides a breathtaking backdrop and skyline for the cross country championships which will make the event a fantastic spectacle. Edinburgh is a beautiful city with superb accommodation on offer, which we are certain, will satisfy world class athletes, journalists and spectators from all over the world”.
Edinburgh staged the European Cross Country Championships at the Holyrood Park venue in 2003, an event which is still widely regarded as being the best ever in the 20 year history of that event. This helped to create a lasting legacy for cross country running in this country.
A photo of Paula Radcliffe winning the SPAR European Cross Country Championships (courtesy of Athletics Images) is attached. Radcliffe won the European women’s title for the second time in Edinburgh in December 2003, adding to her two victories in the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in 2001 and 2002.
To book your accommodation in Edinburgh during the event visit Visitscotland.com/citybreaks.
The 36th IAAF World Cross Country Championships take place in Holyrood Park, Edinburgh on March 30th 2008.
