Nike Cross Nationals

Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) (formerly known as Nike Team Nationals) is an invitational cross country meet that serves as the unofficial team national championship of United States high school cross country. Sponsored by Nike, It was designed to heighten competition between high school cross country teams nationwide. NXN was formerly a part of the Nike Nationals Series, which included national events for indoor and outdoor track.

NTN was started in 2004 along with the other two meets in the Nike Nationals Series in order to promote the national circuit for high school competitive running. Because the series is not sanctioned by NFHS, the high school sports governing body, the meet is conducted under normal USATF Open competition rules. High school teams cannot represent their high school name directly, but instead represent clubs that consist of members of the high school team. The inaugural race in 2004 consisted of 21 boys' teams and 20 girls' teams and was seen by an estimated 4,000 spectators. Kinetic XC Club of Saratoga High School, which had been ranked in polls as the number one girls' team in the country for the past decade, dominated the girls' race with a score of 51. Kroy XC Club of York High School won the boys' race with 92 points. The race featured a special award called the "Golden Anchor," given to the top four number five runners in each race.

The 2005 race saw the introduction of an eighth man race, which was held before the main event races, and in 2006 combined with the open race.

An Open Race was new to the 2006 event, with 30 top boys and girls from around the country given the chance to compete as a team on the national level; however, they did not qualify and therefore Nike did not provide their expenses or clothing. Also new to 2006 was a revision of the course. On December 2, 2006, a Kenyan boys' team and a Kenyan girls' team were also flown in to partake in the open events; the teams dominated the North American course and showed spectators a whole new view of racing.

On April 25, 2008, Nike announced that it will change their name from NTN to NXN (Nike Cross Nationals). Along with the two teams from each region that make it to NXN, Nike will also take the next five individuals from each region and they will also be able to compete in the same race, just without a team.

This new format has created many conflicts with the Foot Locker Cross Country Championships. The FLCCC has been one of the nation's most prestigious high school cross country races since its inception in 1979 as the Kinney Cross Country Championships. With the different regions for FLCCC and NXN (changed to Nike Cross Nationals in 2008 to recognize individual achievement) and both races/qualifying races near or on the same dates as the other, runners are faced with a tough decision to make, ultimately depriving either race of some national elite runners, thereby also diluting a true "national champion" individual runner.

In the past, Nike has selected 20 teams from around the nation to compete in the NTN meet, which typically was held the first weekend in December (Nike Team Nationals is preceded by Nike Pre-Nationals in late September). These selections were based on regional and national rankings updated weekly during the fall cross country season. Teams were selected on "Selection Sundays", typically following the finish of state meets. There were eight regions across the country: Northeast, Southeast, South, Midwest, Heartland, Southwest, Northwest, and California. In addition, four at-large teams were selected, which could be from any region. Starting with the fourth NTN meet, however, the entry procedures changed; New York became its own region due to the girls' teams over the years dominating the meet (see below), raising the number of selected teams to 22. Also, regional meets held in each of the regions (except for California; will use end-of-season performances) now guarantee the top two finishing teams invites, most likely due to complaints about how a team should have gone, but didn't. New York was originally going to use the top 2 teams in the Federation Meet, but it was changed to also have a regional meet. This upset some fans, and cause some teams to skip the Federations meet to prepare for the NTN regional. There will still be four at-large teams chosen by the NTN committee, in addition to the top two teams from each region.

In the beginning, the event was held in the second weekend of December in Portland, Oregon, at the Portland Meadows thoroughbred racing track. The race featured a man-made five-kilometer course that is completed with three loops, following European cross country tradition. The venue had an enclosed 3,000-seat grandstand, allowing spectators to see the whole race, unlike normal cross country meets. The infield of the track, where the course was set up, was also open to spectators who wished to get a more close-up view of the race.