Rules & Conditions
Rules & Conditions
Below are the general rules and conditions of the Association followed by the rules and conditions of the Championships:
Rules of the Association
1) That this Association be called THE BERKS, BUCKS AND OXON CROSS COUNTRY ASSOCIATION, with permitted abbreviations THE BERKS, BUCKS & OXON CROSS COUNTRY ASSOCIATION / THE BBO / BBO XC / THE ASSOCIATION.
2) The Association is open to all clubs, universities, military service units, colleges, schools and youth organisations whose headquarters are situated within the three counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire.
3) That the object of The Association is to encourage competition, fitness and wellbeing through participation in cross country running.
4) The Association aims to achieve this through arranging the BBO annual cross country Championships to be held in accordance with UK Athletics cross-country running rules.
5) The Championships are typically to be held on the 3rd weekend of November each year. Any proposed change to that is to be voted on at a BBO Committee meeting.
6) It is the responsibility of the Association to arrange suitable venues for the Championships.
7) That the management of the Association be vested in a President, three or four Vice-Presidents, a Chairman, Treasurer, Secretary, and one or more other committee members, 5 to form a quorum. All shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting.
8) An auditor shall examine the accounts of the Association for the past financial year. Such accounts to be presented to the AGM by the Treasurer.
9) That the Annual General Meeting be held in the summer, and that the financial year-end is recognised as 31st March.
10) Championship entry fees are to be reviewed annually.
11) That a Special General Meeting shall be called by the Secretary or Chairman within 14 days of receipt of a written request signed by representatives of three different clubs, stating the reason for such a meeting.
12) That no rule be altered, rescinded or created, except:
a) if voted for at an AGM. Notice of all proposed alterations must be sent to the Secretary or Chairman at least 14 days before the following AGM.
b) if voted for at a formal Committee meeting, with the proviso that these changes be temporary until voted on at the next AGM.
13) That any individual or club intending to enter the annual BBO Championships abide by these rules or be liable to exclusion from the Championships.
14) That any matter not provided for in these rules or in the Championship rules shall be dealt with by the AGM, whose decision shall be final.
15) That it be stated these Championships are a unique standalone event and are a separate event from the individual County Championship cross country races held by the Athletics Associations of each of the three respective counties (Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire), which are typically held in December or January each year.
Last reviewed and updated: August 2025.
Rules of the Championships
1. That all athletes taking part in the BBO Championships shall be affiliated to UK Athletics and shall pay the required Entry fee.
2. All athletes of a club or organisation wishing to score in the team competitions must be first claim members of the club they represent and be eligible under English Cross Country Union Rules for cross country running.
3. Athletes registered ‘second claim’ to a club in the tri-county area, but whose first claim club is outside the BBO area, may enter the Championships but will be registered as a non-scoring GUEST.
4. Individual athletes born or resident (for the qualification period) within the tri-county area, but affiliated first claim to a club outside of the Berks, Bucks, Oxon region, may still enter the Championships but will be registered as a GUEST and will be non-scoring.
5. Club vests must be worn in all races, excepting for Under 11s (non-EA-affiliated), who may wear club t-shirts.
6. The closing date for entries is as stipulated on the Entries Notice, which will be issued by the Association about two months before the Championships.
7. Entries for the championships must be submitted at least 14 days prior to the race, accompanied by the appropriate fees, names and active EA registration number.
8. Trophies will be presented to teams on the day but must be returned to the Association after photo opportunities on race day, to ensure their safekeeping and that engraving can be done by the BBO in a timely fashion.
Last reviewed and updated: August 2025 by the BBO Committee.