Latest ONSW News
No-one in NSW will be surprised to hear that Julian Dent was named Orienteering Australia's Athlete of the Year at the recent presentation in Bendigo. Julian has been a stalwart of the Australian men's international teams since his first outing in JWOC in 2002. He has represented Australia at WOC six times with his best result the 13th place in the relay in Kiev, Ukraine in 2007. Last year he moved to Sweden to train with club Malungs OK and this year is settled and freshly ready to tackle the 2013 WOC races in Vuokatti, Finland. Best of luck!
NSW Sports Minister Graham Annesley was on hand at the Sydney Summer Series final last Wednesday to present Westleigh resident Karin Hefftner with the Series Cup for 2012-13. Karin had a phenomenal set of races during the series, winning 23 events and scoring the most points of any competitor over the 27-week season. 
Mr Annesley said: “Congratulations to Karin on her fantastic performance. Orienteering is about getting people out exercising for enjoyment firstly, and competition for those who desire it. Membership is growing and it’s great to see young kids and older folks mixing it with the elite athletes of the sport.”
Karin and her husband Larry Weiss arrived from South Africa in 1996. When a work colleague raved about the Summer Series event she had been to, Karin gave it a go the following week. "I thought this is a sport that sounds interesting and like fun," she recalled. "I haven’t looked back."
Stinger of the Month for March will be a popular choice - Josh Blatchford. A very generous spirit, he is unstinting in his support of the NSW Junior Squad, helping with coaching at camps and training events. Highly approachable his relaxed yet focussed manner make him a great role model.
Coming back into form after injury last season he posted a 5th in the Sprint Final in the recent National Orienteering League in South Australia. A bit more distance gave him some time to hunt down the pack and he took a terrific 2nd in the Long Distance at the same NOL.
Along with a large contingent of other Stingers, Josh will be back in action down in Victoria this Easter weekend. We will be looking forward to cheering him on, and hoping he can gather in more of these placings to build his case for a spot on the 2013 World Orienteering Championships team for Australia. With his Stinger of the Month pack from Endura he'll be all set for great results!
As the mercury shot towards 30 degrees and the bellbirds’ shrill monotone doubled as a start clock, Garingal organiser John Anderson and setter Glenn Horrocks ushered in a new year, new teams, new rules, new participants, a new ML co-ordinator… and the same old Mitchell Park – steep in places, open fast running here and there, and loads of rocks. Read Ian Jessup's report here
