JOHN OLIVER (NSW)
The Bob Mouatt Award for Services to Orienteering Australia is a new award which is determined by the Board rather than through the Awards Committee. The first presentation of this award is made to John Oliver to recognise his 50 years of service in administering and promoting the OA Badge Scheme, by far the longest period that any individual has held the same official OFA/OA position.
When the Orienteering Federation of Australia established the Badge Scheme in 1975, John as appointed as a National Statistician to manage it and keep track of qualifying events. In 1984, the National Statistician role was split and John’s position was renamed Badge Scheme Secretary.
When interest in the Badge Scheme began to wane around the year 2000, John became proactive in promoting the scheme among clubs, advising club secretaries of the highest award each club member had earned and encouraging clubs to purchase badges on behalf of their members. The result of this initiative, which was beyond the expected duties of the Badge Scheme Secretary, was a huge increase in awards over the next few years, with about half of Australia’s clubs purchasing badges for their members, providing additional income for Orienteering Australia.
