2008 Archive

New Zealand’s orienteering test team fought back against Australia today winning the second test match at the Central Districts Champs at Waitetuna in the Waikato.

The race played out in a pine plantation on steep hills which made for hard racing as the orienteers battled through undergrowth, marshes and streams to complete the toughest course of the Waitangi Summer Carnival so far.

Australia’s Dave Shepherd took out the men’s race ahead of New Zealander Carsten Joergensen and compatriate Simon Uppill, however, the New Zealand men topped the Australians in points 26 to 23.

In the Women’s race Rachel Smith came in four minutes ahead of fellow Kiwis Lizzie Ingham and Rebecca Smith beating the Australian’s 29 to 23.

The New Zealand team’s total of 86 brought the kiwis to within one point of the Aussies who are on 87 after two of four test matches.

The Orienteers head to Auckland’s One Tree Hill tomorrow for a special sprint race as part of the Auckland Summer Series before heading to Hedley Road on Saturday for the third test match and World Ranking event.

Video from the first test match on Youtube.

National Orienteering League – Rounds 1 & 2, in Victoria on March 8-9.

Attention M/W17-20 and M/W21 competitors. Entries close on February 8, 2008.

Invitation and entry form.

NZ Orienteer Ross Morrison has stamped his authority on the Waitangi Summer Carnival wining his third race in a row by taking out today’s loop race at Kairangi.

Morrison’s time of 55 minutes and 54 seconds was too quick for Australia’s Simon Uppill and David Shepherd who finished in 56 minutes and 6 seconds and 57 minutes and 55 seconds on a course which demanded high levels of endurance in scorching sun and strong winds.

Estonia’s Liis Johanson stepped up from second place yesterday to lead the women’s race from start to finish relegating New Zealand’s Piret Klade and Australia’s Jo Allison to second and third.
Johanson looked at home on the Waikato hills as she completed the four laps in 59 minutes and 54 seconds while Klade was only just off the lead in 1 hour and 10 seconds with Allison more than a minute back in 1 hour 1 minute and 17 seconds.
The loop race saw the athletes begin the race together which made tight head-to-head racing and tested nerves as the leaders ran with their rivals breathing down their necks.

The Waitangi Summer Carnival heads to Taranaki tomorrow for the Central Districts Champs where New Zealand will attempt to claw back points from Australia in the second of the four test match series.

Results from today’s Loop Race:-
Men’s Elite
1. Ross Morrison (New Zealand) 0:55:47
2. Simon Uppill (Australia) 0:56:06
3. David Shepherd (Australia) 0:57:55
4. Mark Lawson (New Zealand) 0:58:03

Women’s Elite
1. Liis Johanson (Estonia) 0:59:54
2. Piret Klade (New Zealand) 1:00:10
3. Jo Allison (Australia) 1:01:17
4. Rachel Smith (New Zealand) 1:03:07
5. Laurina Neumann (Australia) 1:07:55

Orienteering Australia has appointed a three-person coaching group for the 2008 World Orienteering Championships. Mike Dowling (OA Director, High Performance) will head the group as the senior coach, with Rob Preston being the Men’s Coach and Sue Neve the Women’s Coach.

The decision to appoint a senior coach is recognition of the challenges that our coaches have faced over recent years, and the aim to is provide an environment in which our emerging coaches have the support of an experienced coach during the critical phases of the World Championships. The role of the Senior Coach will be to provide support to the men’s and women’s coaches and have a strategic overview of team preparation.

Good results at 2008 WOC are important in terms of ASC funding (the next quadrennial review will be undertaken in the first half of 2009) and Australia’s representation at the 2009 World Games in Chinese Taipei. Furthermore, having Mike Dowling at the 2008 IOF Congress will assist with the presentation of Orienteering Australia’s bid for the IOF to revert to biennial World Championships for foot and mountain bike orienteering.

Australia has won the first AUS-NZ test match, held as part of the Waitangi Summer Orienteering Carnival in NZ.

Hawke’s Bay Orienteer Ross Morrison dominated the men’s proceedings for the second day in a row at Waitangi Summer Orienteering Carnival today winning the Waikato University Sprint race by 26sec. Morrison was followed in by Christchurch’s Carsten Joergensen and Australia’s David Shepherd in a race which saw temperatures in the thirties and the lead change numerous times.

Greta Knarston of Counties Manukau fought off Estonia’s Liis Johanson to win by three seconds and both were well ahead of Australian Jo Allison in what was the closest race of the carnival so far.

The Waikato University Sprint race doubled as the first of four test matches between New Zealand and Australia which will run throughout the week finishing at Stillwater in Auckland on Sunday.

Australia left New Zealand to play catch up winning the first test match 56 to 46.

The match was a close battle with a draw accounting for the men’s race, 26 each, but the Australian woman were to strong coming home with 30 to New Zealand’s 20.

With the attendance of Orienteers from around the world the field has shown strong results and has doubled as a world ranking event.

Carnival organiser Greg Flynn said “the rankings are formulated based on the quality of the field and with the Aussies attending the quality of the field is increased. As a result the event has attracted even more athletes from around the world.”

“Today’s test match was the first of two world ranking events this week which will see the athletes fighting for positions in the races and the world rankings,” Flynn said.

Athletes head for Kairangi on the edge of Mt Manatrauti in the Waikato tomorrow for The Loop Race which is aimed to create fast, tight, head-to-head racing, packed with spectator value.

Results from today’s Waikato University Sprint race:-

Men:
1. Ross Morrison (NewZealand) 14:27
2. Carsten Joergensen (Christchurch) 14:53
3. David Shepherd (Australia) 14:55
4. Simon Uppill (Australia) 15:10
5. Jamie Stewart (New Zealand) 15:15

Women:
1. Greta Knarston (NewZealand) 14:30
2. Liis Johanson (Estonia) 14:33
3. Jo Allison (Australia) 14:40
4. Jasmine Neve (Australia)15:19
5. Anna Sheldon (Australia) 15:24

Test match:
Australia, Women 30, Men 26
New Zealand, Women 20, Men 26,

Ranking in non-Elite classes based on results in the Australian Easter 3-Days (E1, E2, E3), Australian and Oceania Sprint (AS, OS), Medium (AM, OM), Long (AL, OL) Distance Championships, the NSW and ACT Long Distance Championships (SA, SO).

Points are awarded for each event completed on the basis of 100 points for first place and lesser points for other competitors. An orienteer’s best 3 events count towards their ranking. The first 10 orienteers ranked in each class are published here. State Secretaries have lists of all orienteers ranked between 50 and 100 points inclusive. When more than 1 orienteer in a class has 100 points, the first ranked orienteer is determined by the average of their 3 best winning margins.

Some points of interest in the 2007 rankings:

• Winner by the largest margin was Herman Wehner (WE.A), winning by 31.44 percentage points.

• There were a number of classes where more than one orienteer earning maximum points (this year they are separated by winning margins): Henry McNulty (LO.W), Matthew Doyle (EN.Q); Joshua Blatchford (NC.N), Lachlan Dow (BS.A); Alex Tarr (YV.V), Tim Dent (YV.V); John Lyon (TT.S), Clive Pope (UG.Q); Ray Kelly (UG.Q), Kevin Paine (BS.A); Katie Doyle (EN.Q), Jacqui Doyle (EN.Q).

• 19 clubs had class leaders in the rankings with the most successful clubs being: MF.V, EU.V, NC.N (3);  EN.Q, WE.A,  UG.Q (2); GO.N, EV.T, YV.V, TT.S, WO.W, UR.N, NE.V, WA.S, TF.Q, LO.W, BB.Q, AL.T, BS.A,  (1).

• Families with two or more members placed in the rankings were:  Doyle (Matthew M12, Katie W14, Jackie W14, Steve M40); Hill (Daniel M10, Barbara W35); Ingwersen (Ruben M10, Ann W65); McNulty (Henry M12, Oscar M14); Neve (Todd M14, Sue W50); Blatchford (Joshua M16, Nicola W12); McComb (Cathy W35, Jonathan  M35); McComb (Rory M16, Andrew M45); Wehner (Martin M40, Herman M80); Vincent (Phoebe W12, Robert M45); Lawford/Bourne (Geoff M50, Jenny W45); Tarr (Janet W65, Alex M65); Lyon (Jeffa W70, John M70); Mount (Sue W70, Tony M75).

• All ranked orienteers in W12 are from NSW and those in W14 are from Queensland.

• Two orienteers were ranked in more than one class: Katie Doyle EN.Q (W14, W16); Nicola Blatchford NC.N (W12, W14).

The full National Rankings are available here.

Darryl Erbacher

Hi all
I’m aiming to put out regular squad updates over the coming months.

The main thing here is to let you know of upcoming training opportunities, and of course, the selection trial information.

The training sessions and trials are open to anyone who wishes to try out for the team this year, or in future years.
My contact details are:
Kay Haarsma  kayhaarsma@hotmail.com   08 83370522 (h)  Australian Coach

ACTION NEEDED BEFORE FEB 7th

Confirm attendance at 1st training session in NSW on Feb 16-17

Only reply if you are coming:    Name:

If others will come to training with you  No.

If you and how many others would like accomodation booked in a local caravan park at Moss Vale or nearby  Numbers:

Send to: kayhaarsma@hotmail.com  and copy to james@translogix.com.au

Racing News

Adrian Jackson starred at Wildside (multi-day xc event) in Tasmania winning overall with a total time of 6 hours, with two close on his tail just 3 minutes down.  Tasmanian orienteer Matt Patten was 14th in the open.  Carolyn Jackson was 4th in the masters, Paul Darvodelsky 11th in masters, and John Whittington 7th in masters and Daryl Smith 5th in his class.

In the XC Nationals just last weekend AJ was 11th in the elite men, taking 2hrs 09, 7 mins down on 1st and 5 mins from 3rd.  Darvo was 11th in his category.

Interestingly enough Oenene Wood, who won the National womens road champs 2 weeks previously in Ballarat and has been our top road rider for some years, raced in the very competitive elite womens race and placed 10th, 6 mins down overall.

I’m sure that many were involved in adventure races etc on the Aust day weekend – let me know how you got on.

Training Opportunities before selection Trials

Other riders aiming at the team in 2008 or beyond are also invited to attend any of these training sessions- please let likely people know and get them to email both James Lithgow (manager) and myself with details.

NSW – Feb 16-17

Sat – meeting at Wingello township at 10.30am, for training on the local map. A session before and after lunch.

There is training also going on at Belanglo on this day, but it is better if we train on a different map and have Belangolo “fresh” for Sunday’s event.

Sat evening.  We are happy to arrange accomodation at a local caravan park in cabins, so that we can all chat in the evening.  A and B squad members will have accomodation cost paid.  Family members and friends are also welcome, but will need to pay us accomodation fee.

Camping also available in Belanglo.

Sunday – Belanglo event, debrief and home.

March 8, 9 &10 – Ballarat area, Victoria

Probably run sessions on Sat pm, Sun pm and Mon morning.

Will confirm exact times closer to the weekend.  Just mark in your diary now if you wish to attend.  I’ll call for nominations in a later bulletin.

April 17 & 18 – Ballarat area

This will be the 2 days immediately preceding the trials.   Aimed primarily at those “outer staters” who can touch up their skills on the detailed Vic maps but all are welcome.

Accomodation will be provided and paid for by squad funds these nights in caravan park cabins for squad members.   More details will be provided later – but book early to get cheaper flights.

Aim to come in Wednesday night or early Thurs morning.

2008 National MTB-O Series and Selection Trials for 2008 MTB WOC and MTB JWOC

19-20 April Newstead and Ballarat Victoria

Race 1 Saturday, 19 April Long-Distance Newstead, Vic
Race 2 Sunday am, 20 April Middle-Distance Ballarat, Vic
Race 3 Sunday pm, 20 April Sprint-Distance Ballarat, Vic

National Series

There are four divisions of the National Mountain-Bike Orienteering Series for both individuals and teams.

• Men (M21E)
  • Women (W21E)
  • Junior Men (M17-20E)
  • Junior Women (W17-20E)

Each of these divisions will be ridden in races in this series.

2008 Selection Trials for MTB WOC and MTB JWOC – These three events will be the primary selection criteria for the Australian MTB-O Team to contest the August 24-31 World Championships in Ostroda, Poland.

Race 1 National MTB-O Series & Selection trial

Saturday, 19th April 2008
Format: Long-Distance (Race 1)
Organiser Rob Edmonds – Nillumbik   Course Setter Geoff Armstrong
Event Adviser Tim Hatley
Venue Newstead, new map (2008) for mtb-o; 1:20,000, 5m contours;
Rob Edmonds (track classification /OCAD)

Terrain Spur gully terrain with some gold mining. Track
network complex in some areas with generally fast riding.

Classes M21E, W21E, M-20E, W-20E        Fees Senior $25, Junior $20
Winning Times   M21 E 90-110 minutes    W21E 80-90 minutes
M-20E 80-90 minutes      W-20E 60-70 minutes

Start Times Race 1 at 11.00 am   Vic MTB-O courses from 12 noon.

Race 2 National MTB-O Series & Selection trial

Sunday, 20 April 2008
Format: Middle-Distance (Race 2)
Organiser David Elms  -Course Planner Mark Valentine
Event Adviser Blake Gordon (eurekao@netconnect.com.au)
Venue “Nerrina Scenic Reserve”, Ballarat; last used in June
2005 Victorian State Series; Andrew Slattery (track
classification; updated February 2008 by Ian Chennell
Scale 1:10 000 with 5m contour interval

Terrain Goldmining terrain with many tracks and complex
network of tracks and paths.

Classes M21E, W21E, M-20E, W-20E.  Fees Senior $17, Junior $15
Winning Times M21E 50 -60 minutes     W21E 40-50 minutes
M-20E 50-60 minutes     W-20E 40-50 minutes
Start Times National Series 9.30 am     Vic MTB-O from 10.15am

Race 3 National MTB-O Series & Selection Trial

Sunday, 20 April 2008 at 2.00 pm
Format: Sprint Distance (Race 3)
Organiser David Elms – Eureka    Course Planner Mark Valentine
Event Adviser Blake Gordon (eurekao@netconnect.com.au)
Venue “Nerrina Scenic Reserve”, Ballarat; last used in June
2005 Vic State Series; Andrew Slattery (track classification; updated Feb 2008 by Ian Chennell

Scale 1:7 500 with 5m contour interval

Terrain Goldmining terrain with complex network of many tracks & paths.

Classes M21E, W21E, M-20E, W-20E.    Fees Senior $13, Junior $10
Winning Times:All classes: (M21E, W21E, M-20E, W-20E) = 20-30 minutes

Start Times National Series from 1.30 am   Vic MTB-O Champs from 2pm.

________________________________________________________________________

Embargoes The area covered by the Nerrina / White Swan and Mia
Mia / Blowmine orienteering maps. Copies of the old maps will be made
available on the National MTB-O Series event page at
http://www.orienteering.asn.au/nationalleague
Rules The event will be run under the IOF and OA rules for MTB-O races. You may not ride, walk or carry your bike off mapped tracks.

Accommodation Ballarat, Daylesford and Castlemaine have numerous accommodation options.

Victorian Champs – A full range of Victorian MTB-O Championship courses
will be offered on Saturday and Sunday. Pre-entry on the Victorian MTB-O(www.vicmtbo.com) and the Eureka Orienteers website www.eurekaorienteers.asn.au/

National MTB-O Series Entry Race 1 & (Race 2 and 3)

Entry Fees Long-Distance, ( Middle + Short Distance)
Seniors (M21E, W21E) $25.00 $30.00
Juniors (M-20E, W-20E) $20.00 $25.00
SportIdent Hire $3.00 $3.00

Overseas events

For information on the first 2008 WRE on 23rd – 24th February in Portugal – Torres Vedras.
Please go to http://www.atv.pt/eventos/pagina/?eid=278&id=24 for the information.

All info about World Ranking Event in MTBO, which will be organised on 26th and 27th April 2008 in Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia, is available at www.ok-sg.si/sgmtbo08

Dates that might be of more interest.

• 21-27 july – polish 6 day  (in terrain very close to woc)

22 jul world ranking middle event = WRE, 23 jul WRE long.

• 16 aug WRE long swiss bern
• 17 aug WRE long swiss bern
• 18-23 aug Aust team tr camp in Poland
• 24-31 aug WOC Poland

National MTB-O Series Round 1 / Selection Trials for 2008 MTB WOC and MTB JWOC in Ostroda, Poland / Victorian MTB-O Championship

19-20 April 2008

Newstead / Maldon and Nerrina / Ballarat, Victoria

Saturday 19 April Long-Distance Selection Trial / National Series Race 1 / Victorian Long-Distance Championship
Newstead / Maldon, Victoria

Sunday 20 April am Middle-Distance Selection Trial / National Series Race 2 / Victorian Middle-Distance Championships
Nerrina / Ballarat, Victoria

Sunday 20 April pm Sprint-Distance Selection Trial / National Series Race 3 / Victorian Sprint-Distance Championships
Nerrina / Ballarat, Victoria

Invitation / Entry Form (PDF – 85kb)

Entries close 10 April 2008

Blake Gordon

WOC 2008, World Cup, Bushrangers

The following selection procedures for WOC 2008 (July, Czech Republic) Bushrangers teams (February, Waitangi NZ and September, Maryborough QLD) and World Cup teams (May, Latvia; June, Norway; July, Sweden: October, Switzerland) have been agreed to by the High Performance Management Group.  They reflect input from Australian and overseas-based elite athletes; coaches, experience from past selection processes and general selection guidelines published by the Australian Sports Commission.  They also reflect Orienteering Australia’s rules. Please read this document carefully it provides detailed advice on how to get selected in the respective teams.

The selection criteria can be found here-WOC2008SelectionCriteriaFinal.pdf

World University Orienteering Championships

Expressions of interest are required for athletes interested in attending the World University Orienteering Championships in Estonia. Participants must have proof of enrolment at university in 2007 or 2008.

No funding is available from Orienteering Australia, however most students will be eligible for funding from their university. More information on selection procedures will be announced soon.

All nominations and enquiries to High Performance Manager, Rob Preston to oa_headcoach AT netspeed.com.au

NSW Stinger and ACTAS athlete, Julian Dent, finished 2007 on top of the Australian Elite Rankings list for the first time.  Dent’s impressive performance at the World Championships in Ukraine contributed to his leading ranking margin of over 600 points.  In the strong men’s field at WOC, Dent made 2 finals, and was only 71 seconds behind the World Champion in the Sprint Final.  Dent demonstrated his class by winning the main 3 days at Easter, and then returning to Australia late in the season to dominate all disciplines at the Oceania Championships.  ACTAS’s David Shepherd and Rob Walter completed the top 3.

TIS’s Hanny Allston led the women’s ranking list again in 2007, as she did in 2005 and 2006.  All of Allston’s top five ranking scores came from the World Championships, where she now holds her own against the best orienteers in the world.  This also highlights Allston’s focus on peaking at the right time of the year for the biggest races.  Grace Elson (TIS) made the most of her opportunities in Allston’s absence to win several domestic races including the Oceania Championships, and take a hold on the second ranking place.  Jo Allison (ACTAS) was ranked in the top three, as she has done so for the past seven years now.

It was no surprise that Simon Uppill (SASI) topped the junior men’s rankings.  On top of his brilliant JWOC races, Uppill also impressed at elite level in 2007, making the top 5 of the senior elite list.  Louis Elson and Kieran Sullivan had probably their best years to make the top three.

Like Uppill, Vanessa Round (SASI) won the junior women ranking by a large margin.  Round exceeded most people’s expectations in Dubbo, and was also more than competitive in many elite races.  Heather Harding and Rachel Effeney completed the placings.

Full ranking details for M/W 17-20E and 21E are available from the Rankings link on left hand side of the Orienteering Australia page.