By Clay Shaw Photography by Clay Shaw and Karen Mitchell
Bathurst, Australia, February 18, 2023, World Cross Country Championships, Mount Panorama Motor Racing Circuit—The Mixed Relay was the first of the main events in the 2023 edition of World Cross Country and began at 3:30 PM. It was quite hot and sunny. The Australian team was expected to do well and they did. Jessica Hull ran the fastest lap two and put Australia in first place. Kenya and Ethiopia would pass Australia on the final two laps, as Kenya earned gold and Ethiopia earned silver. The four years since Aarhus 2019 World XC didn’t change the East African dominance in cross country.
South Africa was fourth. Team USA was fifth. Steeplechaser Emma Coburn hurdled the piles of racing-car tires in “The Chicane.” Great Britain was sixth. Morocco was seventh, Canada was eighth. Uganda was ninth, and New Zealand rounded out the top ten.
The World Cross Country Mixed Relay has become a fan favorite and draws talented world-class athletes. Fifteen teams competed, including the Athlete Refugee Team.
Full Team Results
23:14 Kenya
23:21 Ethiopia
23:26 Australia
23:50 South Africa
24:32 United States
24:39 Great Britain
24:48 Morocco
24:55 Canada
25:06 Uganda
25:08 New Zealand
25:14 Spain
26:27 China
27:15 Athlete Refugee Team
29:47 Papua New Guinea
34:27 Fiji
The Mixed Relay – the first of the main events of 2023 World Cross Country – with 15 teams.
Emma Coburn of the USA runs ahead of Kate Current of Canada on “The Boomerang” section of the undulating course.
Heather Maclean of the USA finishes the Mixed Relay. Team USA took fifth place.
Emma Coburn of the USA would later hurdle all of the stacks of tires in “The Chicane.”
Alexandra Bell of Great Britain races with Rebekah Greene of New Zealand in the Mixed Relay.
Prudence Sekgodiso of South Africa shares the lead with Mirriam Cherop of Kenya on lap two.
Caster Semenya of South Africa ran in the Mixed Relay. The team placed fourth.
Jessica Hull of Australia runs the fastest lap two in the Mixed Relay, leading Australia to the bronze medal.
Jordan Mann of the USA runs lap three for the USA in the Mixed Relay.
Abbey Caldwell of Australia runs a solid anchor leg to earn Australia the bronze medal in the Mixed Relay.
Brenda Chebet breaks the tape as Kenya wins the Mixed Relay seven seconds ahead of Ethiopia and twelve seconds ahead of Australia.
Team Australia was expected to do well, and they did, earning the bronze. Abbey Caldwell, Oliver Hoare, Stewart McSweyn, and Jessica Hull earned cheers from the home crowd.
New Zealand’s Mixed Relay team: Eric Speakman, Anneke Grogan, Samuel Tanner, and Rebekah Greene.
The Athlete Refugee Team: Anjelina Nadai Lohalith, Fouad Idbafdil, Josephine Tain Augustino, and Seyd Taha Ghafari.
Team USA was fifth in the Mixed Relay: Heather Maclean, Jordan Mann, Emma Coburn, and Alec Basten.
Kenya won the mixed relay led by Kyumbe Munguti, with Marriam Cherop, Brenda Chebet, and Emmanuel Wanyonyi.
Runner's Gazette 
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