AAC Championships
{{Short description|Annual track and field competition}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox sports league
|sport=Track and field
|logo=150px
|country=England/United Kingdom
|founded=1866
|folded=1880
|related_comps=AAA Championships
}}
The AAC Championships was an annual track and field competition organised by the Amateur Athletic Club (the de facto governing body for amateur athletics in the United Kingdom).{{cite book|last=Matthews|first=Peter|title=The Guinness Book of Athletics Facts and Feats|pages=9–10|year=1982|publisher=Guinness Superlatives|isbn=0-85112-238-8}} It was the foremost domestic athletics event in the United Kingdom during its lifetime and was the predecessor of the prestigious AAA Championships.{{cite web|url=https://nuts.org.uk/Champs/AAA/index.htm |title=AAA, WAAA and National Championships Medallists |website=National Union of Track Statisticians |access-date=19 July 2024}}
History
The competition was founded in 1866 as a men-only competition and was held at the club's home base at the Lillie Bridge Grounds in London. By 1879, the championships had arrived at a crossroads because club athletes complained that the staging of the events only suited the University athletes because of the dates chosen to stage the championships. This led to an additional Summer championships in 1879, hosted by the London Athletics Club at the nearby Stamford Bridge Running Grounds.{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002446/18790329/213/0038 |title=The Amateur Championship Meeting |work=Field |date=29 March 1879 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription|access-date=17 July 2024}}{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0002446/18790621/153/0024 |title=Amateur Athletic Championships |work=Field |date=21 June 1879 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription|access-date=19 July 2024}}{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000609/18790614/067/0005 |title=he Championship meeting at the L.A.C grounds this day |work=London Evening Standard |date=14 June 1879 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription |access-date=19 July 2024}}{{cite news |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000893/18790614/038/0004 |title=The Athletic Championships |work=Sporting Life |date=14 June 1879 |via=British Newspaper Archive|url-access=subscription |access-date=19 July 2024}} The Northern Athletics Association, whose membership was wider than that of its southern counterparts, threatened to boycott the AAC's annual championships, causing the AAC to collapse and in 1880 the Amateur Athletic Association (AAA) was formed, with rules that ensured any genuine amateur could join irrespective of their occupation or social class.Eric Halladay, Rowing in England - A Social History : the Amateur Debate, p3, 1990
In 1880, representatives of the Amateur Athletic Club handed over to the new association the challenge cups that had been competed for at their championship for presentation at the new competition.Daily Telegraph & Courier (London), Mon 5 Jul 1880 p. 3 The prizes were presented by Lady Jersey, wife of the Earl of Jersey.Birmingham Mail, Mon 5 Jul 1880 p. 2
Past Winners
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!width=30| !width=50|Year !width=80|Date !width=80|Venue !width=250|Stadium !width=200|Notes | |||||
| 1 | 1866 | 23 March | London | Beaufort House, Walham Green | |
| 2 | 1867 | 15 April | London | Beaufort House, Walham Green | |
| 3 | 1868 | 19–20 June | London | Beaufort House, Walham Green | |
| 4 | 1869 | 3 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 5 | 1870 | 9 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 6 | 1871 | 3 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 7 | 1872 | 27 March | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 8 | 1873 | 5 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 9 | 1874 | 30 March | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 10 | 1875 | 22 March | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 11 | 1876 | 10 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 12 | 1877 | 26 March | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 13 | 1878 | 15 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | |
| 14 | 1879 | 7 April | London | Lillie Bridge Grounds | Spring championships |
| 15 | 1879 | 14/16 June | London | Stamford Bridge Running Grounds | Summer championships |
See also
References
{{reflist}}
{{Athletics in the UK}}
{{British championships in athletics}}
{{defunct athletics competitions}}
Category:Defunct athletics competitions
Category:Athletics competitions in England
Category:Recurring sporting events established in 1866
Category:Recurring sporting events disestablished in 1880
Category:National championships in the United Kingdom
Category:National athletics competitions
Category:Defunct sports competitions in England
Category:1866 establishments in England