As the National Cross-Country Championship draw closer, provinces have begun the groundwork to hold selection events to come up with their teams.
The national event is scheduled for November 22 in Bindura.
It serves as the selection competition for next year's World Athletics Cross Country Championships due to take place on January 10 in Tallahassee, in Florida, US.
The national event is coming earlier than the usual schedule because of the world event, which is set for January.
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Athletes will be out to compete for the men and women's slots to the world event in January.
Bulawayo Athletics Board chairperson Watson Madanyika said they have started selecting their team after holding a track and field event last week.
"We have started the selection. We had the track and field competition last week. So, we were selecting those athletes who participated in the 10 000 metres because for the seniors, they are going to run 10 kilometres," he said.
"We also have another selection on the 11th of October. It will be track and field again. After that, maybe we can have a cross-country selection event here in Bulawayo before competing in Bindura.
"So, we use that to select our athletes. We pick the middle and long-distance athletes," Madanyika said.
The national event in Bindura will see senior men and women competing in 10km while Under-20 men will be up for 8km and the women battle it out in 6km.
Under-18 men and women take part in the 6km and 4km races respectively.
The programme will also include the Under-12 boys and girls (1km), and Under 16 boys and girls (2km) as well as a 2km race for 40 years and above men and women.
Madanyika said with an opportunity to represent the country at the world stage, athletes are raring to go.
"I think they are ready, because they know that the national cross-country championship is coming, and they know that it's a selection for the World Cross-Country championship that is going to be held in America in January 2026.
"So, they are working hard, for sure, so that they stand a chance of being selected to represent Zimbabwe," added Madanyika.
Some of the senior athletes they are considering for the championships are Phakamile Ndlovu, Freedom Banda and Annie Chirisa.
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Harare Athletic Board vice chairperson Aaron Whyte said they are gearing up for the national event.
"As a province, we were aware of the change in the dates. So, what we have done is we have put mechanisms in place to try and get our athletes and our teams ready for the big event.
"We have set the 9th of November as the deadline for us to have selected our team," said Whyte.
With most of their athletes already in action, taking part in road races, Whyte said arrangements have been made to ensure they are at their peak going into the national championships.
"Most of those who take part in the cross-country championships are those athletes who have been doing road races. So, these athletes are the ones who make the bulk of the cross-country team.
"We have discussed with coaches to say instead of athletes going off-season, they should just get into a transition period for them to peak again.
"So, it's a multiple-peak season for them," Whyte said.
At the previous edition of the World Cross Country Championships, held in Serbia, Wellington Varevi represented the country in the senior men and Previous Munsaka competed in the Junior Women.
