title: 1979 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
text: # 1979 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
  
  The 1979 IAAF World Cross Country Championships was held in Limerick, Ireland, at the Greenpark Racecourse on 25 March 1979. A report on the event was given in the Glasgow Herald.
  
  Complete results for men, junior men, women, medallists, and the results of British athletes were published.
  
  ## Medallists
  
  | Event | Gold | Gold | Silver | Silver | Bronze | Bronze |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | Individual |||||||
  | Senior men (12 km) | John Treacy Ireland | 37:20 | Bronisław Malinowski Poland | 37:29 | Aleksandr Antipov Soviet Union | 37:30 |
  | Junior men (7.36 km) | Eddy de Pauw Belgium | 23:02 | Steve Binns England | 23:09 | Ildar Denikeyev Soviet Union | 23:20 |
  | Senior women (5.04 km) | Grete Waitz Norway | 16:48 | Raisa Smekhnova Soviet Union | 17:14 | Ellison Goodall United States | 17:18 |
  | Team |||||||
  | Senior men | England | 119 | Ireland | 198 | Soviet Union | 210 |
  | Junior men | Spain | 57 | England | 74 | Soviet Union | 75 |
  | Senior women | United States | 29 | Soviet Union | 48 | England | 68 |
  
  ## Race results
  
  ### Senior men's race (12 km)
  
  * Note: Athletes in parentheses did not score for the team result
  
  ### Junior men's race (7.36 km)
  
  * Note: Athletes in parentheses did not score for the team result
  
  ### Senior women's race (5.04 km)
  
  * Note: Athletes in parentheses did not score for the team result
  
  ## Medal table (unofficial)
  
  * Host nation (Ireland)
  
  | Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | 1 | England (ENG) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
  | 2 | Ireland (IRL)* | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
  | 3 | United States (USA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
  | 4 | Belgium (BEL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
  | 4 | Norway (NOR) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
  | 4 | Spain (ESP) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
  | 7 | Soviet Union (URS) | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
  | 8 | Poland (POL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
  | Totals (8 entries) | Totals (8 entries) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
  
  * Note: Totals include both individual and team medals, with medals in the team competition counting as one medal.
  
  ## Participation
  
  An unofficial count yields the participation of 383 athletes from 27 countries. This is in agreement with the official numbers as published.
  
  * Australia (11)
  * Austria (7)
  * Belgium (21)
  * Canada (20)
  * Czechoslovakia (1)
  * Denmark (21)
  * England (21)
  * France (21)
  * Ireland (21)
  * Israel (4)
  * Italy (21)
  * Lebanon (1)
  * Netherlands (11)
  * New Zealand (15)
  * Northern Ireland (21)
  * Norway (11)
  * Poland (6)
  * Portugal (13)
  * Scotland (21)
  * Soviet Union (16)
  * Spain (21)
  * Sweden (5)
  * Switzerland (7)
  * Tunisia (6)
  * United States (20)
  * Wales (21)
  * West Germany (19)
  