Nominations have now opened for the 2020 Oz MTBO Team. We’re looking for male and female riders in the Junior (M/W20) or Elite (M/W21) classes to represent Australia at the World Champs, in the Czech Republic in August.
Nominations are open until 21st March. Use this link to submit your details – https://forms.gle/tk6iM5KS2jtr67Kr9
The team selection criteria can be found here –
For questions regarding selection, please contact Kay Haarsma
These will be held on the weekend of April 4-5 based in Beechworth, Victoria.
The trials are for both the elite and the Junior (U21yrs) World Championships teams. A maximum of 6 men and women in each category are eligible for selection. Orienteering Australia would especially like to see many junior representatives try for the team.
The two events will compose a sprint event in Beechworth on “Maydays” and a long event on the updated “Devil’s Elbow“ map at nearby Stanley. Note that both maps are now embargoed for riders nominating for the team. However digital copies of the old maps for armchair study can be attained by emailing kayhaarsma@hotmail.com.
A training day will be held on Friday 3rd based in the Beechworth area. This will involve some riding plus theory, but won’t be overly strenuous. Riders should aim to source accommodation in Beechworth as soon as possible, as it is school holidays in Victoria.
Nominations for the trials and whether you are attending the training day will be sought in late February. The World Championships are being held in the Czech Republic (17-23 August) but team members will also be required to attend the pre Champs training camp there from August 10th. Riders receive some funding support from Orienteering Australia but will need to pay all airfare and uniform costs, and approximately $1,000 towards the 2 weeks of overseas expenses.
For more information contact Kay Haarsma (OA MTBO C0-ordinator) on 0403 455 534.
Australian MTBO Team Coach & Team Manager positions for the 2020 World Championships team to the Czech Republic are sought.
Both officials will need to be overseas for about 2 weeks, approx. from 9-23 August, to allow for a training period before WOC.
The coach will conduct at least one training camp within Australia; organise the 7 day pre-Championship training camp overseas and lead the team during the Championship week..
The position is voluntary in its nature.
However at least ¾ of the overseas flight costs to and from WOC and all expenses and on the ground costs there will be met, except for meals.
Some funding is available to support squad & team activities and coach expenses within Australia.
More details about this position: 2020 WOC MTBO Coach Position
The main roles of the manager are to:
-Co-ordinate the day to day arrangements of the Australian team (WMTBOC & JMTBOC team members) whilst they are overseas, both at the pre-champs training camp and at WMTBOC itself.
This specifically involves food, accommodation and travel needs.
-Manage the team budget on a daily basis and maintain financial records of items spent whilst overseas. All expenses for the 2 weeks in Czech Republic will be met.
More details about this position: 2020 WOC Manager Position
Applications due: December 13th.
Further information: Kay Haarsma kayhaarsma@hotmail.com 0403 565 534
The annual Aus v NZ Challenge, held during the Australian MTBO Championship carnival at Maryborough, Victoria, saw Australia emerge victorious 18 points to 14. The challenge was contested over the 8 age classes nominated by the visiting nation in each of the 4 races. In both races 1 & 2 the teams shared the honours with 4 wins each. In the 3rd race Australia won 5 classes to 3, thus giving them an edge, but no guaranteed victory going into the final race. Thanks to wins in W21, W40, M21, M50 & M70 classes in the race 4 Australian manager Andrew Power was reluctantly handed the challenge trophy by the Kiwis, who had held it for some years. The Championships saw the sprint, middle and mass start events held on the outskirts of Maryborough, while the long distance champs was held in the forest east of Dunolly. This was the first time that all 4 individual events had been contested at the one carnival and attracted 162 pre-entrants plus some enter on the day. Among these were 27 Kiwis and 2 from Britain and 1 from Hungary. Many congratulations to the 3 organising clubs, Bayside Kangaroos, Eureka Orienteers and Yarra Valley and their extra helpers who conducted an excellent carnival.
Race reports, results and Winsplits are available on the Championship website, while photo’s, courtesy of Jason Rogers, are available on the Aus MTBO Facebook page.
After the races 26 orienteers stayed on for a 2 day International Orienteering Federation (IOF) Event Advisor Clinic conducted in the Maryborough community hub. This was led by Hungarian MTBO expert Sandor Talas who updated the knowledge of participants in the technical aspects of MTBO event organising.
The most comprehensive Australian Championship MTBO carnival ever conducted takes place this weekend (Oct 25-27th) in the forests around Maryborough, Victoria.
The program includes 4 individual races over different formats and distances plus a training event using the innovative MapRun technology. There are competitors from Ireland, Great Britain & Hungary as well as 25 New Zealanders who are contesting an Australia V NZ challenge over 8 age classes. Many of these visitors did well in last weekend’s 3 race ACT MTBO Championships and have been training midweek on maps in the Beechworth area.
For the older riders both the middle & long distance events constitute the first races of the 2020 World Masters Series. This is part of a 14 race program, with the other 12 races being held in Europe. Many Australians & New Zealanders travel overseas to take in many of these races in July-September, so having 2 races “at home” is important.
Additionally on Sunday afternoon & Monday there will be 24 eager participants in the first International Orienteering Federation (IOF) MTBO clinic held outside Europe. This is being led by Hungary’s Sandor Talas, a renowned expert. The clinic is aimed at upskilling event advisors and organisers, both to improve our own event standards and to give some the capacity & knowledge to run or be event advisors at World Championship level.
In the elite M21 class Australian team member Ricky Thackray has excelled this year and will be aiming to improve on his one gold medal (in sprint) from last year. He faces a strong field, even including surprise entry Alex Randall who won a bronze medal in the World Relay Champs, in Maryborough, in 2004. Newcastle’s Tim Doman will be looking to use his superior hill power in the long championships, especially after his win in that event in ACT.
The Kiwi duo of veteran Marquita Gelderman and teenager Tegan Knightbridge, a 2 time Junior World Championship representative, are strongly fancied in the elite woman’s W21 class. Marina Iskhakova is probably Australia’s best chance for victory. Orienteering is truly a “sport for life” activity, as demonstrated at these titles. 10 year old Patrick Cooper is competing in the M12 class. At the opposite end of the age scale, Helen Alexander is riding in the 80+ year’s class!
Event timetable:
Thursday 2pm+ – MapRun training event
Friday 2pm – Mass start
Saturday 9am – Sprint
Saturday 1.30pm – Middle
Sunday 9am – Long
More details: www.ausmtbochamps.com
Results will be on: Eventor Australia
Congratulations to orienteer Carolyn Jackson who again claimed gold in the recent World Masters Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships in Germany. Despite inclement weather with 5 degrees temperature and rain that had the bike tracks resembling rivers, Carolyn was able to bring home gold in the long event and bronze medals in both the sprint & mass start races in the W55 class.
Queensland’s Tamsin Barnes (W50) just missed the medals with a 4th, two 5ths and a 6th while Victoria’s Bill Vandendool had 3 results in the top 10 in the strong M65 class. New Zealand was also represented on the podium with Rachel Drew (W40) winning a bronze.
Carolyn Jackson’s great navigational ability has been well demonstrated over the years. She has amassed 16 gold, 5 silver and 2 bronze medals from the 7 Masters MTBO championships she has attended since her debut in Hungary in 2012. All these Championships have been based in Europe so the Melbourne based rider has had to travel extensively.
Carolyn has formerly represented Australia in both foot and MTBO disciplines in the elite world championships, a feat that only a few other orienteers have managed. She also races nationally in mt bike cross country, endurance and stage races and usually dominates her age class.
The next two weekends will see the culmination of the MTBO season, with 3 races in Canberra on October 18-20th and then the 4 event Australian Championships at Maryborough, Victoria on Oct 25-27th. Carolyn will be racing at these events, along with the top Australian riders from all states as well as a strong 30 rider New Zealand contingent.
The Australian v New Zealand MTBO Challenge will take place in conjunction with the Australian MTBO Championships from October 25-27 in Maryborough, Victoria.
New Zealand, as the visiting team, determined that the challenge would be contested over the following 8 classes: W21; W40; W60; M21; M40; M50; M60; M70.
The challenge will be contested in all 4 Australian Championship competitions – the sprint, middle, long and mass start events.
The scoring system works as follows:
The full AUS v NZL MTBO Challenge Rules are at the link below.
The Australian team to contest the Challenge is very strong, comprising of riders from all states & ACT.
Our M21 team all represented Australia at the elite World Championships in Denmark earlier this year, while Carolyn Jackson (in W21) has just returned victorious from the World Masters Championships last week in Germany. Andrew Power (NSW) is the Australian team manager.
The team is listed below:
| Name | State | Class | |
| Tim | Doman | NSW | M21 |
| Ricky | Thackray | WA | M21 |
| Joel | Young | Q | M21 |
| Michael | Ridley-Smith | NSW | M40 |
| Ori | Gudes | NSW | M40 |
| Anthony | Jones | VIC | M40 |
| Andrew | Power | NSW | M50 |
| Hamish | Mackie | NSW | M50 |
| Ed | Steenbergen | VIC | M50 |
| Robert | Vincent | NSW | M60 |
| Darryl | Smith | TAS | M60 |
| Peter | Cusworth | VIC | M60(M, L) |
| Bill | Vandendool | VIC | M60(Mass, Spt) |
| Leigh | Privett | VIC | M70 |
| Rick | Armstrong | VIC | M70 |
| Reid | Moran | Q | M70 |
| Marina | Iskhakova | ACT | W21 |
| Kate | Gavens | VIC | W21 |
| Natasha | Sparg | WA | W21 (Sprint) |
| Carolyn | Jackson | VIC | W21(Ma, M, L) |
| Cathy | Hogg | ACT | W40 |
| Aurelia | Strozik | SA | W40 |
| Melissa | Biviano | VIC | W40 |
| Kay | Haarsma | SA | W60 |
| Heather | Leslie | VIC | W60 |
| Andrea | Harris | Q | W60 |
An exciting season culmination awaits MTBO riders with 7 championship events in 10 days possible for those attending both the ACT & Australian Championships.
| The ACT MTBO Championships – 18-20 October.
This is on the weekend before the Australian Champs and is a great chance to have a go at the new Mass Start format. 3 events in 3 days will provide competitors with some excellent single track and fire road riding in two very different locations. The Mass Start will use a newly prepared map adjacent to the National Arboretum at East Stromlo. The Middle Distance and Long distance will challenge competitors with a combination of excellent single tracks and undulating fire roads at Kowen Forest. Read the information flyer available on Eventor. https://eventor.orienteering.asn.au/Events/Show/7527 Entries close OCT 13 Australian MTBO Champs – 25-27 October This will be the first ever Australian MTBO Championships featuring 4 individual Championship events. The new mass start format is being run as well as the traditional sprint, middle & long. The Championship carnival is being conducted at Maryborough, Victoria. This area has historical significance as the Relay event for the 2004 World Championships was held there, to great international acclaim. The terrain is undulating rather than hilly with a good network of tracks to provide the necessary mental challenge. Fast riding is assured. This makes it suitable for everyone from the expert to the novice. There are two e-Bike classes to choose from as well. There is also a training event and area available using the innovative Map Run phone and App technology. The sprint, middle & mass start events all start within 4 kilometres of central Maryborough whilst the long championship honours will be contested 24kms north at Dunnolly. The Championships are also a round of the World Masters Series, the final round of the National MTBO Series and an Australia-New Zealand Challenge. All good reasons to be part of something very special. Entries are adding up with a large contingent of New Zealanders coming over, plus a handful of riders from Europe but please make sure you get your entry in before October 13th or oct 18th if you wish to pay late entry. https://eventor.orienteering.asn.au/Events/Show/7321. More details: www.ausmtbochamps.com Kay Haarsma
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Victoria’s Angus Robinson (BK) made history to become Australia’s first JWOC MTBO gold medallist by winning the sprint at Turnov (Czech Republic) today. He had a 21 second victory margin and earnt himself a World Championship jersey as well as the IOF gold medal. Angus rode really consistently throughout the race and nailed several crucial route choice legs. Some of this action was captured on live Czech television! Chris Firman (Qld) placed 23rd in the elite class of 109 riders, less than 2 minutes behind the winner and was pretty pleased with his ride also. Rest day tomorrow followed by the long and relay on Friday & Saturday.
Information for Elite MTBOer’s
