COUNTDOWN TO JWOC 2007 featured high in the standings on several other days. With the big guns all starting together, the reverse chase on day 5 at a wet and slippery Macquarie Woods was easily the highlight of the week. Dent caught Lundanes and frequent Aussie visitor, Danish international Carsten
Norwegian junior Olav Lundanes.
Junior Internationals test Aussie terrain at the Ultimax Stingers 5 Days
Robbie Preston in front of a pack after the Day 2 mass start.
Words & Photos: Eric Morris SOME of the world’s best Junior Orienteers got a taste of the extremes of Australian terrain and weather at the Ultimax Stingers 5 Days, held in Orange in the first week of 2007. The event was designed to provide competitors with a taste of what they could expect when the Junior World Championships roll into Dubbo later this year.
Swedish senior international, Mats Troeng.
Joergensen, half way round the course. They raced at high speed through the later controls chased by last starter Troeng running alone. Dent took the day victory and an unofficial first place with Troeng holding on as the official overall winner, with Dent ineligible as an event organiser. First official Aussie was junior Simon Uppill who continues to develop into a class orienteer and a genuine medal chance in Dubbo, particularly over the classic distance.
The men’s competition was a fascinating race headlined by dominating performances by three men. Julian Dent showed he is back from an injury blighted 2006 with several impressive performances, the best being a demonstration of his incredible technique at speed to dominate both sprints on day 1 at Kahli’s Rocks. Swedish senior international Mats Troeng was consistent, winning the Middle-distance at Gumble and never finishing far down the field on any day. But the one athlete that everyone was talking about was Norwegian junior Olav Lundanes. Lundanes already has a handful of JWOC medals and looks a certainty to start as hot favourite in Dubbo. He easily won the classic event on a hot day at Gumble and 6 THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER MARCH 2007
Amber Morrison (NZ) takes a direct route to the control.
The women’s class was dominated by Grace Elson. She was never seriously challenged being the one competitor showing consistency over all of the five days and demonstrating
