Prior to that, the sport was organized under the auspices of more localized bodies where the first official competitions were held, like the Interessen-Gemeinschaft Älterer Langstreckenläufer (IGÄL) formed in 1968 in Germany, British Veteran Athletic Club in Great Britain and the AAU in the United States.

In 1972, the United States Masters International Track Team (USMITT) scheduled a tour of Great Britain and then Germany.

The World Veteran Long Distance Championships were already in existence as the older road runner was more common at that time.

[3][4] The scope has also expanded from initially track and field competitions (called "stadia" within the organization), to include road running, race walking and cross country running events (called cumulatively "non-stadia", as these do not take place in a stadium).

[7] The first non-Stadia events were the World Road Running Championships in Birmingham, England in 1992 and has been held in even numbered years ever since.