Bathurst (Australia), Feb 17 (IANS): India's premier long-distance runner Avinash Sable will lead the five-member Indian contingent at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships 2023, to be held on Saturday.

The world cross country championships return after a gap of four years as Covid-19 pandemic forced a two-year delay to the biennial event.

Unlike marathon events, which are held on roads or paths, cross-country running is a sport in which runners race open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass.

The 44th edition of the biennial event will see more than 400 athletes from about 45 teams compete at Mount Panorama.

Sable, who won silver medal in the 3000m steeplechase at the Commonwealth Games 2022 with a national record-breaking run, will compete in the senior men's 10km cross country race on his World Athletics Cross Country Championships debut.

The Indian will be up against a tough field full of elite runners that include defending champion Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei and Kenya's Geoffrey Kamworor - who, between them, have won the past three senior men's titles.

Besides Sable, India's Anand Singh will also compete in the men's 10km race. Asian championships bronze medallist Parul Chaudhary, Sanjivani Jadhav and Chhavi Yadav will be representing the country in the women's 10km cross country race.