Latest ONSW News
Congratulations to our Junior Boys (Sam Woolford, Alvin Craig and Oskar Mella) on being the third Australian team in the Relays at the national schools champs in Adelaide on Thursday.
We led after the second leg but our rivals were too fast over the closing stage and we had to settle for fourth overall (NZ are fielding teams and came second).
Our Junior Girls (Nea Shingler, Iida Lehtonen and Niamh Cassar) finished fifth, but were the third Australian team excluding NZ and any composites.
Our senior teams struggled, with the boys in particular affected by the loss of Alastair George and Duncan Currie through illness.
It has been six hard days in a row of competitive orienteering for our students, and many of them are giving away several years in age and experience to the other states.
In Wednesday's schools Long champs, Iida Lehtonen (GO) continued her fantastic carnival by being first Australian in the Junior Girls. Iida was third behind two very strong Kiwis.
Other NSW placegetters were Alvin Craig (NC, 2nd, Junior Boys) and Nea Shingler (BF, 3rd Australian, Junior Girls).
Friday is a well-earned rest day for all competitors ahead of the Australian Long Champs on Sat.
You can catch up on all the results, splits and Routegadget here.
The Sydney Summer Series season ticket is the hottest item in town, with more than 80 sold as we stretch out the soreness from week 1 at a very hilly Gordon.
Vivien de Courcelles set a tough test, but a perfect one as it turns out - Big Foot Open Men's star Bart Vonhoff coming home with 590 points (just 10 shy of the maximum).
Three of the Masters Men tied on 570, while Gill Fowler (pictured here flying in to the finish right on darkness) scored 530 to be the best of the women, ahead of ACT O royalty Shannon Jones on 500.
There are plenty of regulars in SA for the Aus champs, so the 160 entries was an excellent roll-up to get season 28 underway.
A reminder that the season ticket is available to purchase until November 21 - and to add a little intrigue we're offering a bottle of wine or box of chocolates to the person who guesses the final number sold.
The season ticket offers a discount of up to 33%. No more rummaging around for loose change, no more annoying rego cards to fill in.
Next week we are on another steep map at Mosman, back in the usual daylight saving hours - and hopefully with a special guest to officially open the season.
Anyone starting after 6.30pm during October may wish to bring a headlamp or torch.
WHO rookie Niamh Cassar has made a stunning debut at the Australian schools champs in Adelaide, winning the Junior Girls title by just four seconds.
Niamh, in her first year in the NSW team, was second behind New Zealand's Emily Hayes but the first Australian home in 17:42 around the 2.7km course. What a fantastic result!
It was also a great turnaround after she finished seventh, and two minutes adrift, in the W16A Sprint the previous day. Big Foot's Nea Shingler was third among the Australians and sixth overall in the Junior Girls.
Days 3-4 of the Aus champs carnival were Sprints, with the long weekend Monday being the Australian titles to finish the Renmark section, and Tuesday in Adelaide the opener to the schools champs at Keithcot Farm.
Garingal's Duncan Currie finished a highly commendable second in the Senior Boys, a minute behind Victorian star Aston Key.
Newcastle prodigy Alvin Craig had the Junior Boys race at his mercy, leading after #6, but lost 1 minute 40 seconds on the next leg to end up fourth (and third Australian), 67 seconds behind the winner David Stocks from the ACT. That was after winning M16A the previous day.
In the Senior Girls, Bennelong debutante Tshinta Hopper was the leading NSW athlete in 14th place.
In Monday's Australian Sprints, NSW winners were: Nea Shingler (BF, W14A), Wendy McConaghy (GO, WOpenB), Tracy Marsh (BF, W40A), Jenny Enderby (NC, W50A), Paula Shingler (BF, W55A), Maureen Ogilvie (UR, W85A), Alvin Craig (NC, M16A), Angus Leung (GO, M20A), Shane Doyle (UR, M50A), Tony Woolford (BB, M55A), Eoin Rothery (BF, M60A), John le Carpentier (SH, M75A).
NSW also had six second placings and nine thirds.
Our best performer in the elites was our new scholar, Grace Molloy from Scotland, who was second in the Senior Women (W21E) - knocking off a host of big name Australians in the process.
Our women are leading the way at the Australian champs in South Australia, winning seven Middle Distance titles and two Relays.
The opening weekend was held in erosion gullies by the Murray River at Renmark, offering fast terrain but also the chance to make big errors.
Garingal junior Iida Lehtonen (W14A) and Northern Tablelands veteran Jenny Hawkins (W70A) enjoyed double success, while the only victory for NSW men came in Sunday's M65 Relay where Gordon Wilson (Bennelong), Nick Dent (Central Coast) and Ross Barr (GO) won each leg for a comfortable triumph.
Alastair George (Big Foot) registered an impressive second place in the junior men's elite on Saturday, finishing 42 seconds adrift of Queenslander Simeon Burrill in the Middle.
But all our winners were women: Iida Lehtonen (GO, W14A), Samantha Howe (NC, W35A), Cath Chalmers (BF, W45A), Salme Fuller (IK, W45AS), Jenny Enderby (NC, W50A, pictured), Jenny Hawkins (NT, W70A), Maureen Ogilvie (UR, W85A).
NSW also had 14 second placings and three thirds.
Sunday's Relay winners were: W14 (Iida Lehtonen, Nea Shingler, Mikayla Enderby); W65 (Jenny Hawkins, Val Hodsdon, Lynn Dabbs); and M65 (Gordon Wilson, Nick Dent, Ross Barr).
NSW also had seven second placings and six thirds.
Our junior men's elite led after two legs but Aston Key ran a scintillating last leg for Victoria to win it.
Monday sees the Aus Sprint champs at a local high school.
Results, splits and Routegadget can all be found here.
