2011 European Cross Country Championships

Preparation

The city won the rights to the event at the 120th meeting of the European Athletics Council in 2007. It was the second time that Velenje hosted the event, following its hosting of the 1999 edition. The event mascot, Ligi (an anthropomorphic black mole), returned after its introduction in 1999. In the intervening years, the mascot was used for a number of events in the city and represents the importance of lignite (brown coal) in the city's economy.

Alongside international television broadcasts, European Athletics broadcast the event live on the governing body's official website.

The championships featured six races: there were senior, under-23, and under-20 junior categories for each of the sexes. The men's senior race had a 9870-metre distance, while the women's senior and men's under-23 races were held over 8040 m. The men's junior race and women's under-23 contests were over 6070 m. The junior women had a 3970 m distance to cover. The course for the competition was based near the grounds of the Atletski Klub Velenje (Velenje Athletics Club). It had a relatively flat race profile with no significant inclines and comprises two loops (a 1500 m loop and a shorter 300 m circuit).

Five European Athletics permit meetings preceded the championships on the weekend of 26–27 November: the Skanzen meeting in Budapest, the Cross de l'Acier in Leffrinckoucke, the Warandecross in Tilburg, the Lotto CrossCup van West-Vlaanderen in Roeselare, and the Cross Internacional Valle de Llodio in Llodio. These races and national-level trial events were the primary means of athletes gaining selection for the championships.

Ukraine's Serhiy Lebid returned to defend his 2010 title and the nine-time champion was the pre-race favourite. The 2010 women's champion, Jéssica Augusto, did not enter the competition as she was still recovering from her outing at the 2011 New York City Marathon. The other leading finishers from 2010 – Binnaz Uslu, Ana Dulce Félix and Fionnuala Britton – were among the favourites for the women's race.

Race results

Senior men

• Totals: 76 entrants, 76 starters, 73 finishers, 10 teams.

Senior women

• Totals: 54 entrants, 54 starters, 49 finishers, 8 teams.

Under-23 men

• Totals: 99 entrants, 98 starters, 97 finishers, 15 teams.

Under-23 women

• Totals: 43 entrants, 43 starters, 42 finishers, 6 teams.

Junior men

• Totals: 114 entrants, 112 starters, 109 finishers, 19 teams.

Junior women

• Totals: 93 entrants, 93 starters, 92 finishers, 16 teams.

Total medal table

• Note: Totals include both individual and team medals, with medals in the team competition counting as one medal.

References

References

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2. (11 December 2011). "Britton breezes to gold in Slovenia". RTÉ Sport.
3. (11 December 2011). "Fionnuala Britton wins gold in European cross-country championship". Irish Independent.
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