Page 146 - 2019-20 NJCAA Handbook - May, 2020

11. CROSS COUNTRY – MEN’S & WOMEN’S – DIVISION I
Section 1. Meet/Championship Selection
A. Colleges or organizations wishing to host the NJCAA Cross Country Championship must submit a written request or bid to the
NJCAA National Office by September 1st prior to the subsequent Annual Meeting. Bids shall be for sites three years hence.
B. The NJCAA National Office shall place all bids before the Committee on Championship Events as provided in Article X.
Section 2. Meet/Championship Dates
The date of the NJCAA Cross Country Championship shall be the second Saturday in November.
November 9, 2019 at UNM North Golf Course; Albuquerque, N.M.
November 14, 2020 at Iowa Central Community College; Fort Dodge, Iowa
November 13, 2021 at TBD
November 12, 2020 at TBD
Section 3. Tournament Host Pre-Meet Responsibilities
The NJCAA Championship course must meet the course standards of the NCAA. The NJCAA Cross Country Chairperson or his/her
designee will make a final inspection of the course one day prior to the NJCAA Cross Country Championship. NCAA Cross Country
Rulebook and any exceptions must be cleared through the NJCAA Representative/Designee.
Section 4. Qualification of Teams for Competition
A. All teams will qualify by open invitation, provided they participated in their region championship.
B. No contestants shall be permitted to enter an NJCAA Championship Cross Country Meet unless accompanied by:
1. A coach or faculty member of the sending institution, or
2. A designated supervisory coach or faculty member from an NJCAA member college.
a. A designation of a supervisory person in (2) above must be in writing. It shall bear the seal of the college and the
signatures of the Athletic Director and President or Dean of the sending institution. It shall be sent by certified mail to the
Meet Director. All contestants must remain under the supervision of their coach or the designated supervisory person
throughout the meet and until departure from the site.
C. 1. Regions are to complete region competition 13 days prior to national tournament to allow enough time for meet entry and host
logistics.
2. All entries (up to 10 runners) must be made by each college by the second Tuesday before the national competition. Final
entries must be made, and fees paid by Friday before the national meet. Final declarations must be made by each college one
hour before the first competition held at the national meet.
Section 5. Cross Country Poll
A. The men's course for the NJCAA Cross Country Championship shall be 8,000 meters. The women's course shall be 5,000 meters. It
should be planned with due consideration for the safety and welfare of the contestants. It should not include tricky turns, one that
could be followed with minimum orientation. It should be far enough and cover enough varied terrain to challenge competitors. The
course shall be measured by approved surveyor's methods.
B. Chute length must be equal to three feet per entry. Chute may be in as many sections as the meet manager deems desirable.
Where multiple chutes are used, they must be separated by a 3' by 5' corridor to facilitate supervision.
C. The course must be available for practice on Thursday and Friday prior to the meet on Saturday.
Rules and Officials
Section 6. A. The Poll Committee should be composed of the Poll Coordinator and volunteers from the various regions.
B. Colleges must submit meet results electronically by Sunday, 12:00 midnight EST following each meet to their Regional Poll
Representatives to be included in the bi-weekly release and rankings.
C. The Poll Coordinator will submit bi-weekly meet results to Poll Committee members by Monday, 1:00 p.m. EST. Committee
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members will cast votes for the top 20 teams (20 points for 1 place, 19 points for 2 place, 18 points for 3 place, etc.) to the Poll
Coordinator by Tuesday, 11:00 a.m. EST. The Poll Coordinator will compile the results and submit the top 20 rankings to the
designated website by 1:00 p.m. EST.
D. Member colleges must submit times weekly to their Regional Poll Representatives to be eligible for national rankings.
Section 7. Meet/Championship Course
A. NCAA Cross Country Rules shall be followed with whatever changes or modifications deemed necessary by the NJCAA Committee
on Cross Country.
B. The Meet Host will be responsible for securing the services of all necessary officials, judges, etc. to satisfactorily conduct the meet
as determined by the NJCAA Committee on Cross Country. These officials shall not be drawn from coaches who have teams
participating in the meet.
C. There shall be 30 minutes between the men’s race and the women’s race.
D. In the event of cold or inclement weather, meet participants may wear cold weather gear (i.e.: running tights, team
sweats, rain suits) with the approval of the Meet Director and the NJCAA Representative. If runners choose to wear
cold weather gear, it must be of like color (black) and/or matching team colors.
E. Meet results shall be made public as soon as results can be tabulated and printed. One hour after the last race results have been
posted, the results become official and final and no protest can be filed.
F. Jury of Appeals: Members are the NJCAA Representative/Designee, the Championship Director and a person appointed by
the other two members, not to be a coach in the meet.
G. Men and women will alternate starting times/positions with women running first on even numbered years and men running first
on odd numbered years.
H. Tiebreaker for NJCAA regional or national championship is head-to-head competition of the top 5 runners.