In response to the recent bushfires that wiped out the areas designated for upcoming selection trials Orienteering Australia has determined that the recent Australian Easter 3 Days competition will serve as the ONLY selection races for the Australian team to compete in the World Orienteering Championships in Japan later this year.

Chair of Selectors Iain Prossor said earlier today, “It’s not ideal but after consultation we decided to make the best of a bad situation. The racing over Easter was top class and I’m sure the racing was a fair indication of the talent on offer – I’m just glad we got the results we wanted”.

Jo Allison won her fourth consecutive Australian Easter 3-Days at Jindabyne (NSW) today, while Troy de Haas won the Mens race.

Jo Allison, who runs for the Canberra Cockatoos won in style — she claimed 2 second places and two firsts over the four stages to maintain her status as Australia’s leading female orienteer. She hit the lead yesterday in a demanding Long Distance Race, and held her nerve today, winning by more than 3 minutes overall. In second place was Tasmania’s new leading light, Hanny Allston, who is running in the senior class whilst still a junior. Hanny cemented her claim for a World Championship berth by claiming top-3 spots on each day. Allison Jones of the Canberra Cockatoos ran steadily today to come 3rd.

The men’s field featured the strongest field assembled for a domestic race, and competition was tight. Troy de Haas, who looked out of contention after a poor day 1, blew the field apart yesterday and ran steadily today to claim his win. De Haas, who lives and trains in Finland, returned to Australia for this race: the trip proved worthwhile as he claimed his first major title in Australia. NSW junior Julian Dent showed consistency beyond his years, placing in the top 3 every day to come second, and Rob Walter finished 3rd in his return from long-term injury.

Victorian Nugget Troy de Haas returned to career-best form today at the Australian Easter 3-days at Buckenderra near Jindabyne. De Haas seemed to be out of the contention for the 3-day title after losing 4 minutes in yesterdays middle distance race however in a physically demanding long distance race he showed his true colours dominating the rest of the field in a time of 79:56 almost 7 minutes clear of any other competitor. He now leads the 3 days overall from Julian Dent of the NSW Stingers in 2nd place and David Shepherd of the Canberra Cockatoos in 3rd.

Day 2 of the Easter 3-days is traditionally the key day when the 3-days is won and lost and Jo Allison of the Canberra Cockatoos made her move today winning the day by 2 minutes and passing Hanny Allston of the Tasmania Foresters. Allston still posted the 2nd fastest time and the 3-days overall result looks to be down to a race in two between Allison and Allston. NSW Stinger Tracey Bluett also marked a strong return to elite orienteering moving into 3rd place overall.

You could throw a blanket over the main contenders for the Easter 3-days in both elite classes after a tight first day.

David Shepherd left his recent run of poor form behind him with a strong win ahead of Julian Dent. These two are now tied for first place overall, with Grant Bluett in 3rd. Rob Walter and Tom Quayle are still in the hunt in this easter which promises to be the most competitive Easter 3 Days in recent history. Of the pre-race favourites, only Troy de Haas lost time — he’s now 4 minutes behind the leaders.

Hanny Allston took the Women’s elite race from Jo Allison — they are now separated by 8 seconds at the head of the field, with Swiss international Sara Gemperle a minute behind. Overnight leader, Natasha Key, lost four minutes today and is sitting in 6th place.

Canberra Cockatoos continued their dominance of the National Orienteering League, with a strong performance in the Easter 3-Days Prologue. The Cockatoos won the day by virtue of their Men’s Team (Grant Bluett, 1st; Rob Walter 2nd and Tom Quayle 5th), while the Victorian Nuggets took out the Women’s Teams (Natasha Key 1st, Clare Hawthorne 5th, Kathryn Ewels 8th).

In the women’s race, Tasmanian junior Hanny Allston shot to the lead – but spectators could already see that Jo Allison, who started 1 minute behind Hanny, would beat her time. It was then a nervous wait for last starter, Natasha Key, who appeared on cue to take the race by 7 seconds.

The Men’s race was thrown into disarray by the reigning Canberra Marathon Champion and Park-O specialist, Martin Dent, making the early running with a cracking time of 13:10. Dent would have won the day with that time, but finish officials soon discovered he missed the 11th control. Instead, late starter Grant Bluett came through to trump the early leader, Rob Walter, for a narrow win.

Team scores
Seniors

Juniors

Check out some of their results from the races they went in

There was a sprint race on saturday, results as follows

Elite Prologue – Friday 25th March, Jindabyne.

Important Final Message from the organisers

1) All competitors MUST be assembled on the athletics track by 10:15am at the LATEST. Any competitor arriving late risks disqualification.

2) Please note that this race includes a mix of parkland and some rough open ground, and for the safety of competitors, the organisers recommend the use of ankle protection.

3) Competitors who have finished their race MUST NOT re-enter the competition area until the last competitor has finished.

Anthony Scott
Carnival Coordinator

Check out The FOOL Guide and make this year’s National Orienteering League all the more fun.

Coach Sue Neve will be chasing your nominations for Bushranger Team to compete against NZ in late-May in Victoria. See info and nomination details.

The invitation for the Australian Middle Distance Champs and associated NOL races has been released.