Brooks announced on Thursday that it will launch a national high school cross country showcase which appears to serve as a substitute for the recently shuttered Foot Locker series.
The Brooks XC Championships implements a similar model from the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships and will stage four regional prep championships which will culminate with a final in San Diego on December 13.
“This event will carry the 45-year legacy of regional and national championship cross country meets into a new era, bringing the top high school runners in the U.S. together to compete,” Brooks noted in a statement before explaining its format and dates for the regional meets.
Last week, Foot Locker announced that it would cancel its long-running — and popular — FLXC series after more than four decades. The abrupt announcement drew a wave of comments on social media from current high schools students, FLXC alumni and parent who were disappointed the series came to an end.
Within hours after Foot Locker’s announcement, RunningLane, which has hosted its own established cross country meet in Huntsville, Alabama since 2020, revealed that it would fill FLXC’s void by continuing to offer a competitive high school national event.
Fleet Feet will partner with Brooks as its main title sponsor, with Sound Running on board to handle event logistics in staging the meets. And the national final will take place in Balboa Park in San Diego — the same location Foot Locker has used for years for its own closing event.
Brooks said that it will utilize its experience with its PR Invitational track and field event, which it has hosted since 2011 in Seattle, to stage a top cross country series.
Meanwhile, Brooks also noted that the national winner will earn a slot on team U20 World Cross Country Team and “Golden Ticket” invites will allow competitions who missed the qualifying cut to get a chance to battle for the championship.
The regional schedule begins with the Midwest division in Kenosha, Wisconsin on November 29, South division in Charlotte, North Carolina also on November 29. The Northeast meet location is still pending but will also take place on November 29, while the West division meets in Walnut, California on December 6. San Diego is the setting for the national final on December 13.
Registration for the Brooks XC Championships opens on September 4.
