‘A huge opportunity for Spokane’: City to host cross-country regional competition for the first time

Spokane is hosting the Nike Cross Regionals Northwest cross country championship this year for the first time.

The event brings together high school and middle school runners from Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming . Last year, the races drew more than 4,000 athletes, 5,000 spectators and booked over 2,400 hotel stays, CEO of Spokane Sports Ashley Blake said. The regional event is on Nov. 14 and 15.

For nearly two decades, the tournament was held at Eagle Island State Park outside Boise. The construction of the Course in Spokane Valley propelled the conversation toward making Spokane the host of the event this year, Blake said.

This year’s regional will be at the Spokane Polo Fields and is booked to be held at the Course in 2026. The Bob Firman Invitational will also be held at the Spokane Valley course next year.

The Course is a $7 million project and is almost completely funded by lodging taxes. The Spokane Valley course is on time and on budget, Blake said, set to finish construction this fall and open for events next year . Spokane Sports and Spokane Valley are working together on the facility.

“We’ve always envisioned 2026 to be our championship season,” Blake said.

The venue was designed to meet specifications from NCAA and USA Track and Field to host major events.

Spokane Sports has already secured a number of events to be held at the site in the years to come, including the 2026 and 2027 Northwest Athletic Conference regional championships and the 2027 Division I NCAA west regional. Before those events can come to town, the course needs to be usable, which will likely depend on the planted grass being mature enough to withstand the large-scale foot traffic .

“For an event this size, we want to ensure that every detail is perfect for the athletes, coaches and spectators,” Blake said.

The Course could be ready for events this fall, but final decisions will be made toward the end of September, Spokane Valley city manager John Hohman said. The Course is not ready for an event that will bring crowds like the Nike Cross Country Northwest Regionals.

“The polo fields provide a great option for 2025 and allow us to deliver an outstanding event while we finalize preparations for the Course,” Blake said.

Still, having an event like this in the county is significant, Blake said.

“This is a huge opportunity for Spokane to host a nationally recognized championship that will bring thousands of visitors to our region,” Blake said.

And events like these will continue being held in Spokane Valley in the coming years, Hohman said. The city decided to approve the venue because of its projected economic benefits, he said.

“This project was the number-one ranked project for economic impact and had the lowest cost,” Hohman said.

The greatest economic impact figures to hit local hotels, restaurants and businesses in Spokane Valley.

“It’s a great win for our city and our region to bring this amount of visitors in and to have this level of participation. It will have a tremendous economic impact on the region,” Hohman said.