The World Athletics Cross Country Permit Meetings were an annual series of independently-run

cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...

competitions which were recognised by the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation (from 1912 to 2001) and International Association of Athletics Federations (from 2001 to 2019, both abbreviated as the IAAF) is the international governing body for ...

(IAAF) with permit status. First held in 1999, the meetings could be used to gain qualification to the

IAAF World Cross Country Championships World Athletics Cross Country Championships is the most important competition in international cross country running. Formerly held annually and organised by World Athletics (formerly the IAAF), it was inaugurated in 1973, when it replaced the Int ...

. The number of legs in the series varied from around six to twelve meetings per year, with dates spanning the European winter months, from November to February, prior to the World Championships scheduled in March. The series replaced the

IAAF World Cross Challenge The IAAF World Cross Challenge was an annual global series of cross country running competitions organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). Athletes accumulated points in the series' cross country meets during the s ...

, which was first held in 1990. The last series was held in 2020–2021, after which point it was replaced by the three-tier

World Athletics Cross Country Tour The World Athletics Cross Country Tour is an annual series of cross country running competitions which are recognised by the World Athletics (formerly known as the IAAF). Athletes accumulate points in the series' cross country meets during the sea ...

Meetings

References

{{International athletics Recurring sporting events established in 1999 Cross country running competitions Annual athletics series Cross Country Permit Meetings