The British Athletics Cross Challenge Series, sponsored by Sportshoes x Nike, returns for the 2026/27 season with three winter fixtures. The series is open to athletes of all levels, from international medallists and Olympians to junior runners, who race the same courses in the mud, hills and winter conditions.
The first fixture is at Llandaff Fields in Cardiff on Sunday 8 November. The Cardiff race holds World Cross Country Tour Silver status, which makes it a ranking-relevant opening to the winter for athletes seeking to build their cross country credentials.
The second round takes place at Sefton Park in Liverpool on Saturday 28 November. It doubles as the official trial race for the Novuna Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for the 2026 European Cross Country Championships in Serbia in December, so the result in Liverpool will matter directly for selection.
The series concludes at Wollaton Park in Nottingham on Sunday 13 March 2027, where the day hosts both the British Cross Country Championships and the UK Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships. Entries for Cardiff and Liverpool are open, with athlete registration details for Nottingham due to follow in the new year.
For a sport that spends much of the year on tracks and roads, the series gives domestic distance runners a structured winter programme with selection consequences attached. It also arrives as the cross country season gathers pace in the United States and elsewhere, where college championship races are already shaping rankings.