BMAF provide championships in all athletic disciplines. Cross Country, Road Races, Race Walking & Track & Field Athletics. See details of the forthcoming events on the Fixtures page here.
Age categories run in 5 year blocks from 35+, 40+, 45+ etc up as high as one can keep competing. There are athletes of 100 years of age occasionally! To compete in these categories at any masters event does not require a standard of any sort. You can compete if you can afford to go. You will however need to attain the relevant medal standard in order to win a medal in the track and field championships.
Para-Athletes of all ages are equally welcome to join an area club and compete in area club and national events, alongside the able-bodied athletes, subject to provision of any special equipment needed (e.g. the mounting points in a throwing cage for wheelchair athletes).
The BMAF is made up of the eleven ‘Area’ Clubs. Some of these clubs still use the out dated term of ‘Veterans’. The various Clubs, all run their own championships in all the disciplines, and in some cases a Track & Field League in the summer.
Contact the membership secretary of your nearest ‘Area Club’ and join the BMAF today, You will be joining a friendly ‘Athletics for Life’ organisation giving you the chance, whatever your age, for local & regional competition to National & International opportunities.
We look forward to seeing you competing soon.
How do I become a member?
a) If you are new to athletics, a set of disciplines which includes jumping, throwing and running, and do not belong to a UKA club: You can join the BMAF club in your area. If their constitution allows it, the BMAF club will affiliate you to the UKA (the governing body for Athletics in the UK) as well. This will cost you the Club Fee plus the UKA registration fee. You will have two membership numbers. Your UKA registration number, and your Masters Area Club number. You may need both of these numbers when entering events.
By becoming a member of a BMAF area club, you are also affiliated to the European Masters Athletics (EMA) and the World Masters Athletics (WMA) associations. For details of these organisations go to these links: EMA and WMA.
b) If you already belong to a UKA Club: You can additionally join the BMAF club in your area. This will cost a lesser fee as you are already Affiliated to the UKA. This additional membership does not affect your 1st/2nd claim membership of UKA clubs.
Whether you join via a) or b) your membership to your chosen area club will affiliate you to the British Masters Athletic Federation.
If you already belong to a UKA club or are resident overseas, you can also compete in BMAF Championships without joining an area club, but you will pay a supplement to enter each competition. Some competitions are restricted to BMAF area club members. See here for more information on this option.
The steps to join an area club may vary slightly according to the club, including doing them online, but in summary they consist of the following:
- Provide personal information and contact details plus athletics interests
- Provide documentation to enable validation of date of birth and citizenship
- Pay annual membership fee, including UKA affiliation fee if you wish to join the BMAF area club as a first claim member
- Obtain the area club kit, if you wish to represent the club in inter-area competition
Go to the link here for the list of area clubs and chose the one in your part of the country. (Note that there are two clubs in the South East: SCVAC and VAC). Online facilities for membership applications/renewals and entries to most BMAF competitions are provided by BMAF OpenTrack which is accessed via the (Register/Compete) link on the menu bar above. More detailed instructions for its usage are available in the BMAF OpenTrack User Guide.
Note that the area clubs NEMAA, SVHC, NIMAA and IOMVAC do not yet provide an online membership payment function.
A current UKA registration is now mandatory for BMAF affiliated members and GB-resident open members in order to compete in any BMAF championships. You can find more information here. UKA registration expires each year and payment of the annual fee is required in order to retain affiliation. You can check your EA registration here.
Competing at International Level
For EMA and WMA championships click here.
Members of BMAF area clubs can also represent their home country in the British & Irish Masters Cross Country International. The rules of this competition including selection criteria are given here.