| Sport | Cross country running |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1983 |
| Continent | Central America and Caribbean (CACAC) |
The Central American and Caribbean Cross Country Championships (Spanish: Campeonato Centroamericano y del Caribe de Campo Traviesa) was an annual Cross country running competition organized by the CACAC for athletes representing the countries of its member associations. The competition was established in 1983 following a proposal of Wallace Williams from the Virgin Islands, then secretary of the CACAC. The rationale was that also smaller countries without adequate athletics' facilities could host such an event. The approval for the competitions' implementation was given during the 1982 CACAC meeting in Havana. The first championships were to take place in 1983 on the Virgin Islands, but because of the US invasion of Grenada, the event was postponed and relocated to Puerto Rico.[1]
In the beginning, there were featured races for senior men (about 12 km) and women (6–8 km), and later, from the year 2000 on, also for junior athletes. In addition, there were separate team competitions. The 2000 event was held in conjunction with the South American Cross Country Championships.[2]