| Cross Zornotza | |
|---|---|
| Date | October |
| Location | Amorebieta-Etxano |
| Event type | Cross country |
| Distance | 2021: 8.7 km for men 6.7 km for women |
| Established | 1954 |
| Official site | Official website |
The Cross Internacional Zornotza is an annual cross country running event which takes place in January in Amorebieta-Etxano (Zornotza), the Basque Country, Spain. The competition was first held in 1954 and has taken place every year since, with the sole exception of 1961. Organised by the Club Deportiva Zornotza,[1] the event began as a mainly national-level competition and it started to attract elite international competitors from the mid-1980s onwards.[2]
Zornotza has previously been an IAAF and European Athletics status meeting,[3][4] as well as being in the now-defunct IAAF World Cross Challenge circuit,[5] but is not currently part of an international cross country series. The race suffered from economic problems leading up to the period around 2010, but organisers continued its focus of attracting some of the sport's top competitors.[6] The competition's course, the Jauregibarria,[7] played host to the 1993 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.[8]
The competition features two elite level races: a 10.7 km race for men and a 6.7 km contest for women. In addition to these, several shorter races are held for local runners and youths. Past winners of the elite race include two-time Olympic champion Derartu Tulu. Mariano Haro, a Spanish World Cross medallist, has won the competition more than any other athlete (seven) and won five times consecutively in the mid-1970s.[9]
- ^ Club Deportiva Zornotza Archived 2007-01-05 at the Wayback Machine. Club Deportiva Zornotza. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Gasparovic, Juraj (2011-01-10). Cross Zornotza. Association of Road Racing Statisticians. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Minshull, Phil (2001-01-08). Kosgei and Mugo win in Amorebieta. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Valiente, Emeterio (2006-01-08). Chebii, Morató sprint to wins in Amorebieta Cross Country. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Moiben aims for second World Cross Challenge victory in Amorebieta. IAAF (1998-01-09). Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Ebuya, gran atractivo del 57 Cross Internacional de Zornotza. Europa Press (2011-01-05). Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Tras las nevadas, el Cross de Amorebieta se disputará sobre el barro. ABC. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ Valiente, Emeterio (2008-01-04). Ebuya - T. Bekele clash on tap in Amorebieta – Zornotza Cross Country preview. IAAF. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.
- ^ LVII Cross Internacional Zornotza Archived 2011-09-29 at the Wayback Machine. Real Federación Española de Atletismo. Retrieved on 2011-01-21.