Paris Olympic steeplechase silver medalist Kenneth Rooks headlines USATF Club Cross Country champs...

Nearly 1500 runners will converge upon Chambers Creek Regional Park in University Place, south of Tacoma for Saturday's USATF National Club Cross Country Championships, hosted by Seattle's Club Northwest.

Chambers Creek, which hosted the NCAA Division I West Regionals, the Pac-12 Cross Country Championships, and the 2022 NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships, is known for having a fast course, with no significant hills on the combination of 2k and 3k loops that will be used for Saturday's races.

Weather is going to be a factor, with significant rainfall in the forecast to go along with temperatures in the mid-40's on Saturday. Runners will also be challenged by gusty winds coming off the water, and sloppy footing.

MEN'S PREVIEW...

College Place High School graduate Kenneth Rooks (Paul Merca photo) from outside of Walla Walla headlines the open men's 10k competition, which is the last race of the day at 1:00 pm.

The 2024 Paris Olympics steeplechase silver medalist, two time USA national champion, and 2023 NCAA champion from Brigham Young University competes in his first cross country race since last year's NCAA championships in Virginia, where he earned his only All-America medal, finishing 35th.

While primarily known as a middle distance group, Seattle's Brooks Beasts is showcasing its squad in one of its few local racing opportunities.

The Beasts will be led by newcomer Parker Stokes from Georgetown. Stokes was this year's NCAA steeplechase champ, and was an Olympic Trials steeple semifinalist.

All four members of the Beasts distance medley relay team (1200-400-800-1600) that set the world record of 9:14.58 at the Oregon Relays in April--Brannon Kidder, Brandon Miller, Isaiah Harris, and Henry Wynne--are entered.

Kidder, Miller, and Harris all have world championships experience at 800 meters, while Miller was a Paris Olympian at 800 meters who made the semifinals. 

Kirkland native Dillon Maggard, who has world cross country championships experience and was a US Olympic Trials qualifier at 10000 meters, is entered for the Beasts, but raced almost two weeks ago at the Valencia Marathon.

Ole Miss alum Waleed Suliman and Beasts assistant coach Julian Florez rounds out the Beasts squad.

On paper, the favorites are the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project based out of Rochester, Michigan, led by Budapest world championships marathoner Zach Panning, and former NCAA D3 cross country champ Ethan Gregg from Wisconsin-LaCrosse.

The Hansons won the men's open team title in 2021 and 2022, but didn't have a strong presence at last year's meet due to a number of runners preparing for the US Olympic Marathon Trials two months later.

The top men's individual returnee is Ryan Kutch of Central Park TC-Tracksmith, who was second last year. Minnesota Distance Elite is the highest-placing team to return after a second-place effort last year that was keyed by Joseph Trojan's eighth-place individual finish.

Seattle's Club Northwest will be led by British internationalist Tom Anderson, and Seattle Pacific alum Turner Wiley, who competed at last year's Pan American Games in the marathon.

WOMEN'S PREVIEW...

The headliner of the women's open 6k race at 12:15 pm is Boise State alum Emma Bates.

Bates, who is coming off an 11th place finish at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, finished seventh at the 2022 world championships marathon in Eugene, along with four career top ten finishes in World Marathon Majors races since 2019.

Like their men's counterparts, Seattle's Brooks Beasts will make their presence known in Tacoma.

The Beasts will be led by Allie Buchalski, who competed at the world cross country championships in Australia in 2023.

The two time US Olympic trials competitor at 5000 meters will be joined by Washington alum and US Olympic Trials steeple competitor Kayley DeLay, and middle distance specialists Rebecca Mehra, Valery Tobias, and newcomer Teagan Schein-Becker.

The Hansons-Brooks Distance Project counters with four US Olympic marathon qualifiers in Anne-Marie Blaney, who competed for Team USA at the 2019 world cross country championships, along with Jessie Cardin, Amy Davis, and Megan O'Neil.

The Hansons won the 2021 and 2022 team titles, but will face the defending team champions, the Peninsula Distance Club out of the San Francisco Bay Area.

The PDC, coached by Mercer Island HS and Stanford alum Dena Evans, are led by Arizona alum Claire Green, who was last year's runner-up.

Also on the PDC squad are Maya Weigel, a former NCAA D3 champ at Pomona-Pitzer who was third last year, and Holly Clarke, who finished eighth in 2023.

Bethany Hasz from the Boston AA, who last week ran 8:47.87 for 3000 meters indoors, is in the field along with her sister Megan. Both were collegiate All-Americans at Minnesota.

From a local standpoint, Washington alum Haley Herberg (photo courtesy UW Athletics), an All-American at 10000 meters, returns to the scene of her greatest triumph as a Husky, when she unexpectedly ran away with the 2021 Pac-12 cross country title at Chambers Creek. She'll compete for the Bellingham Distance Project.

High schoolers Sophia and Victoria Rodriguez, who finished 1-3 at the Washington 3A cross country championships for Mercer Island, and eighth & twelfth at the Nike Cross Nationals last weekend in Portland, are entered in the meet, representing Club Northwest.

Stephanie Garcia, a 2016 Olympic Trials finalist in the steeplechase, and Kaitlin Goodman, a four-time US Olympic Trials qualifier formerly out of UC Davis, are both in the meet representing Running Joyfully out of Kirkland.

The day of racing at Chambers Creek begins at 9:30 with the masters (40+) women's 6k, followed by the masters men's 8k (60+) at 10:15 am.

An hour later, the masters 40+ men's 10k gets underway, before the women's open 6k at 12:15 pm, while the open men's 10k closes out racing at Chambers Creek.

The USATF release is available here, while the USATF home page of the USATF National Club Cross Country Championships, which includes the link to live results, and meet entries, is available here.

NOTE: USA Track & Field contributed to this report.

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