Daylesford in Victoria will be the centre of the Australian orienteering world this coming weekend (27-29 may), when the final selection races for the Australian team to compete in the World Orienteering Championships (WOC) in Aichi, Japan, 8 – 14 August, will be held. The New Zealanders will be represented by their WOC team, selected after trials earlier this month near Hamilton, and this contest will give both the Kiwis and the Australians some indication of how they will fare in Japan. Although we have nothing inAustralia to compare with Japanese terrain, the Daylesford terrain will at least be comparable in steepness.

Australian selectors Ian Prosser (chair), Nicki Taws, and Jenny Lawford will select the team on the basis of results from the first round of selection trials at the Easter 3-day event at Jindabyne, together with past form in major international races and Australian championship races. Australians living and competing in Europe willconsidered on the basis of their performances in major European races, and are eligible for selection.

There will be three races, sprint (Friday) 2.4 Km (men) and  2.0 Km (women), long distance (Saturday) 16.79 Km, climb 1180m/9.88 Km, climb 715m, and middle distance (Sunday) 6.1 Km / 4.8 Km. Course setters are Rob Plowright (sprint and long distance, and course setter for the sprint race at WOC in Japan), and Andy Hogg and Natalie Smith (middle distance).

One notable absence from the trials is Tom Quayle. Tom has withdrawn his nomination due to ongoing injury; he has decided to focus on rehabilitation this year aiming to be back to his best for WOC2006.

Selectors will announce the team on this website on the afternoon of Wednesday, June 1.

Results of each of the selection races at Daylesford will be posted on the website as soon as possible after each race. Entry lists and start times for the weekend can be seen via links in the High Performance section of the website.