America's finest cross country runners, including defending women's short course champion Shalane Flanagan and defending long course champion Colleen De Reuck, will compete February 12-13 at the 2005 USA Cross Country Championships and World Cross Country Team Trials. The Championships will take place at Fort Vancouver National Historic Site in Vancouver, Wash.

In addition to crowning national champions, the USA Cross Country Championships serve as the selection event for the U.S. team that will compete at the 2005 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. The top six finishers in the Open and Junior races are eligible to compete March 19-20 at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Saint Galmier, France. The USA Championships follows the same format as the upcoming World Championships, with six races over a two-day span.

More than 600 athletes will compete in six championship races in Vancouver, located near Portland, Ore. The top six finishers in the Senior (open/no age limit) and Junior (age 19 and under) competitions qualify for the U.S. team that will travel to Brussels for the World Championships. In addition, the U.S. Masters Men and Women National 6 km Cross Country Championships for athletes ages 40 and over will take place on Saturday, February 12.

The site of the 2001 and 2002 USATF Winter Cross Country Championships, the Fort Vancouver layout is a rolling, European-style course consisting of 2 km loops on long grass.

Defending U.S. cross country 4 km women's champion Shalane Flanagan defeated a talented field last year on a treacherous snow- and ice-covered course in Indianapolis. Flanagan was in the lead pack from the beginning before displaying a strong finishing kick that got her to the finish line two seconds ahead of runner-up Carrie Tollefson. A two-time NCAA Division I cross country champion while at the University of North Carolina, Flanagan competed at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens after placing third in the 5,000 meters earlier that summer at the Olympic Trials. Flanagan will be challenged in the women's 4 km race by 3-time NCAA 5,000-meter champion Lauren Fleshman and three-time NCAA Division III cross country champion Missy Buttry, who placed third and fourth respectively last year in Indianapolis. 2003 USA Winter Cross Country champion and 2004 Olympian Shayne Culpepper is also in the field.

The women's long course field is headlined by 2004 U.S. Women's Olympic Marathon Trials winner Colleen De Reuck, who won last year's 8 km championship in Indianapolis. The 2002 World Cross Country 8 km bronze medalist, De Reuck won the 2004 U.S. long course crown by a 31-second margin over runner-up Katie McGregor, who will challenge De Reuck on Saturday, as will 2004 Olympian Jen Rhines.

Many of America's top men's distance runners are expected to compete in Vancouver, including mile sensation and 2004 Olympian Alan Webb, who won the USA Club Nationals Cross Country Championship in 2003. Webb will face 2003 men's short course champion Robert Gary in the men's 4 km race, along with 2004 Olympians Tim Broe, Daniel Lincoln and Jonathon Riley, and 2002 NCAA Cross Country champion Jorge Torres.

Broe, Riley and Torres also are slated to compete in the men's 12 km championship, along with 2003 NCAA cross country champion and 2004 Olympian Dathan Ritzenhein, who was the surprise winner of the 2005 Reebok Cross Country Challenge on January 9 in Belfast, Ireland, against a strong international field. Also look for two-time Olympian and four-time U.S. World Cross Country team member Abdi Abdirahman to vie for top honors.

A press release previewing this weekend's races will be distributed on Thursday. The schedule for the 2005 USA Cross Country Championships follows. All times are Pacific Time.

Saturday, February 12

9:15 a.m. Community Run

10:30 a.m. Masters Men's 8 km Championship

11:45 a.m. Junior Women's 6 km Championship

12:15 p.m. Open Men's 4 km Championship

12:45 p.m. Open Women's 8 km Championship

1:30 p.m. Masters Women's 8 km Championship

Sunday, February 8

10:00 a.m. Junior Men's 8 km Championship

10:45 a.m. Open Women's 4 km Championship

11:15 a.m. Open Men's 12 km Championship