It has been a busy and successful week for NSW orienteers. Newcastle's Joshua Blatchford capped off a win in the 17 to 20 year old elite class at the Australian Easter Carnival with selection in the Australian Junior Team. Josh and team mates will contest the Junior World Orienteering Championships in Poland in early July. Full team details are available on the Orienteering Australia website.
Other NSW orienteers to earn top 3 places at the Australian Carnival were:
| Joanna Hill W10A 1st | Daniel Hill M14A 2nd |
| Nicola Blatchford W16A 1st | Rob Preston M21Elite 3rd |
| Gayle Shepherd W35-44AS 3rd | Paul Marsh M40A 2nd |
| Barbara Hill W40A 2nd | Russell Blatchford M50A 3rd |
| Cheryl Bluett W45+B 1st | Eoin Rothery M55A 2nd |
| Debbie Davey W50A 2nd | Robert Spry M55+AS 1st |
| Hilary Wood W55A 2nd | Steve Flick M60A 3rd |
| Lynn Dabbs W55A 3rd | Ross Barr M65A 2nd |
| Barbara Junghans W55+AS 2nd | Terry Bluett M65A 3rd |
| Judy Hay W60A 2nd | John Hodson M70A 2nd |
| Jean Baldwin W65A 2nd | Basil Baldwin M70A 3rd |
| Christa Schafer W70A 3rd | Neil Schafer M80A 3rd |
| Maureen Ogilvie W75A 1st |
Comprehensive results for all competitors are available on the Orienteering Australia Result database. Event photos may be found here and here.
The Carnival was conducted near York in Western Australia in hot and dry conditions. Whilst some sections of the maps were open and fast, competitors needed mental discipline to slow themselves down and navigate carefully through the complex granite outcrops. Garingal club members must have handled the terrain well as the club was awarded the trophy for the best performing club.
The Western Australian Carnival continues next weekend with the Australian Sprint and Middle Distance Championships.
Over the Easter break, some orienteers chose to travel to New Zealand to contest the New Zealand Championships. Paula Shingler had an outstanding weekend, placing 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the Sprint, Middle and Long Distance W45A events respectively. Other placegetters were Ewan Shingler who won the M10 Sprint as well as Margaret Peel who was second in W21AS and Julie Mann second in W50B both in the Long events.
In other overseas news, NSW Stinger and Central Coast star orienteer Julian Dent was placed 8th in the Swedish Sprint Orienteering Championships. This is a promising result for Julian as he will be moving to Sweden later this year to further his international orienteering career.
