Stanthorpe State High’s Ewan Keith has helped Queensland to second place in the Australian School’s Orienteering Championships (ASOC), held in Western Australia late last month.
Keith a member of the Southern Downs and Granite Belt’s Bullecourt Boulder Bounders club, took part in the three-day event in and around Perth and the Brookton area.
It was his first time competiting in the senior boys section of the QLD team – which finished the three-day competition in second behind NSW.
QLD team manager Marion Burrill from Warwick, was very pleased with the team’s
performance, having no mis-punches amongst the 20 team members over the three days of
competition.
Each state is allowed to bring a maximum of 20 competitors in two age groups, junior and senior.
“Ewan’s experience will prove invaluable as he still has two more years to be
eligible for the school’s team,” she said
“In fact, the team is already preparing and looking forward to 2024 when the competition will be closer to home around Armidale, NSW.
She said the competition began with a 3.1km sprint around Aquinas College on the banks of the Swan River in Perth, then moved out towards the Brookton area with a 6.7km individual long distance race where Ewan was one of 45 competitors in the senior boys from all states of Australia and included New Zealand.
“The third day of competition was a relay in the same area with granite rock which suited Ewan, having started orienteering on the Granite Belt,” Burrill said.
“Conditions were warm in the bush events, and particularly so in the relay, which included huge slabs of granite rock which afforded runner’s little to no shade.
“Ewan’s best run was probably in the relay where his team of three came a commendable 4th place, two places behind QLD’s top senior boys’ team which came second out of 11 Australian teams.
“The QLD senior boys finished in second place in the team competition.”
Burrill and Keith have now returned home in time to help the local BBB orienteering club celebrate its 40th anniversary on Sunday morning the 22 of October at Stuart Henry Park next to the Allora Swimming Pool.
The celebrations start from 9am – 10:30am and include a sprint around the streets of Allora, followed by a swim, sausage sizzle and celebrations at the Allora pool.
The first BBB meeting was held at the Stanthorpe State School on 10 October 1983 and the first event was at Quart Pot Creek on 5 November 1983.
Burrill invited everyone to “come along and enjoy the challenge”.
