For the next two years, some local athletes won’t have to travel too far to take part in state competition.

On Thursday, the TSSAA, Tennessee’s governing board for high school athletics, announced Memphis would play host to the state cross-country championships in 2025 and 2026. Shelby Farms will be the venue for the event, which are held in early November.

TSWA All-State Cross Country selections

The decision to move to Memphis from Sanders Ferry Park in Hendersonville was voted on and approved at the first TSSAA Board of Control meeting of the new year. The vote also came with a formal approval to rotate the meets to the east or mid-state for 2027 and 2028, provided the financial and logistical terms are comparable.

“It’s something we’ve wanted for a long time,” said CBHS cross country coach Nick Dwyer, who was part of the city’s winning presentation before the board. “We made a big push for it and made it happen.”

The format for the state meet consists of eight races — boys and girls in two public and two private-school divisions — spread across two days and will draw several hundred runners, coaches and families to the area.

But the biggest beneficiaries could be the Memphis-area competitors, who usually are among those who travel the farthest to take place in state competition. Shelby County hasn’t been home to a TSSAA state championship since Spring Fling was here in 2005.

“It helps make things a little more equal across the state,” said Dwyer, who guided his team to a fourth-place finish in Division 2-AA this past season.

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“This is not the most (geographically) friendly state, but we can still spread things around and we’re going to be the first. We’re pretty happy the TSSAA allowed us to form a committee of cross-country coaches ... and letting us kind of give them the plan.

“So far, they’ve been really good to work with. The TSSAA has usually gotten a bad rap; you usually only hear bad things. But in this situation, they’ve done a good thing. It was very clear at the meeting that there was a lot of support (for rotating), and we’re pleased we’re going to be the first site.”

In other state championship developments, Sevierville Golf Club will remain the home of the state tournaments for the next two years while Murfreesboro will continue to host volleyball. Efforts are underway to extend the contracts with the City of Chattanooga for hosting the BlueCross Bowl football championship and girls soccer.