Filming the Sydney Sprint Weekend

The decisive moment of the men’s knockout final at the Sydney Sprint Weekend (SSW) 2023 was the exit from control 9. It was in the middle of the campus, hidden from spectators. I wasn’t there, and I haven’t spoken to the athletes. How can I be sure that was the decisive moment?

Typically, the story of a race is told through a few comments from the competitors afterwards: “I hesitated at 9” or “I lost map contact”. You draw a picture of the event in your mind, but it may not represent reality.

At SSW, the female and male knockout finals were filmed in entirety, with 11 cameras on the course, documenting how the race unfolded with the key decisions and moments captured. With the footage, just like in major sports, comes the opportunity to watch the race again to understand the sequence of events that led to decisive moments. The knockout format is made for TV, it is quick and full of drama.

Leg 7. The seed is sown for the decisive moment of the race (leg 10), while running leg 7 through the start/finish arena with the spectators cheering on. All six athletes seem to select their route for leg 8 when on leg 7, all punch #7 in a scrum within 1s of each other, no hesitation in starting leg 8.

SSW 2023 Men’s knockout final map.

The story of the race can be told through video stills.

Start – 7. The juniors, Sam and Cooper, lead for the first seven controls, Cooper takes the lead with a route choice to control 4, Sam re-takes the lead through a route choice to #6.

Leg 8. Patrick leads a group of five on the obvious route choice, however, a temporary barrier was installed just short of #8. Patrick starts up the steps to #8, surprised to see the tape blocking the way. Brodie and Angus are driving forward on a racing line, which confirms they had noticed the barrier on the map. They overtake Patrick, and he follows without much time to revaluate what had just happened.

This route choice has several twists and turns with a few sets of stairs. Angus leads a flawless leg without hesitation, however, the complex nature and technical running likely mean Angus wouldn’t have had a chance to plan too far ahead. Ewan chooses an alternative route, longer, but around the outside of the campus, simpler navigation, easier running, and importantly, it would’ve allowed Ewan the chance to at least look ahead and know the rough flow of the course from then on. Important – Ewan would instinctively know how to exit #9. Angus and Ewan converge on #8 at the same time, the highest point of the course.

Leg 9. Incredible to watch. Angus leads a flawless leg down several sets of steps, several twists and turns, always making the correct choice without hesitation, and all at incredible speed. The athletes jump full sets of steps, amazing athleticism and agility. At this pace, Angus is likely only able to focus on the current leg, unable to plan ahead. Ewan is in second place, following but occasionally looking at his map. Brodie and Patrick in third and fourth rarely look at their maps, likely prioritising contact with Angus and Ewan over the map, which is a definitive tactic in the knockout format.

Leg 12. The chasers do make contact with Ewan on the steps up to #11. The exit from 11 has two options, Ewan picks the best one and Angus follows. Patrick and Brodie in third and fourth are now in the position where they’ve exerted great effort to make contact again, likely feeling they can’t outsprint Ewan who is a bit fresher, so they gamble on the alternate route option. This is a good decision given the situation, but unfortunately for them, the route is 20-30 m longer and puts them out of the race.

Leg 13. Ewan accelerates from #12 with gritted teeth. You can see from Angus’s expression that he has little more to give having fought hard just to re-gain contact over the last few legs. The exit from control 9 won the race for Ewan. Perhaps planning ahead during leg 7 helped him.

Control 9 (the decisive moment). Angus punches, stops, wanders to the side, unsure, walks 5 m in the wrong direction. Ewan punches, continues in the correct direction, but hesitates, likely doubting himself after Angus had turned around. Brodie and Patrick stop, frantically trying to locate themselves on the map, possibly confused that Angus is confused.

Orienteering is a unique sport. For filming other sports, you just turn up and press “record". To film an orienteering event, you need to see the map and course beforehand to position cameras in the correct place. The more people see the map beforehand, the more risk is posed to the integrity of the whole event and sport. The filming was only possible due to the support and trust of the organisers. Thank you for entrusting the map to me.

The movie planning was much like a score course, trying to work-out how to film the most number of controls with the least number of people/cameras. We had four people on the course, my parents, my wife Melissa (JWOC 97, 98, 99), and myself moving among controls, three GoPro cameras were installed into positions, and four GoPros (two lent by Jonno McComb) were mobile, carried by Sam (a competitor in the final), Toby Cazzolato, Oscar Mella and Duncan Currie. Thank you.

I hope and believe that the movie of SSW is a wonderful promotion of the sport that we all love. It’s an excellent insight into what it’s like to be out there competing with the elite athletes.

The videos are available on YouTube, search for “Sydney Sprint Weekend”, scan the QR codes or click on the link in the digital version:

• Female Knockout Final: https://youtu.be/_kW6P9zAs0A

• Male Knockout Final: https://youtu.be/q89FuHzo3dM

The decisive moment of the race at control 9, Ewan about to set an unassailable lead. Video still (Duncan Currie with GoPro).

Leg 10. Ewan takes a 30 m lead from the control, the first true gap in the race. The course flows quickly from here to the finish (leg 14) with less navigational challenge. The chasers push hard to catch-up, exerting more energy than they would like. The effort likely sapping energy from a finish sprint that is just 1.5 minutes away.

• Knockout Semi-Finals with Runner’s Choice: https://youtu.be/rCdI8Gxkzz0

• Mixed Relay: https://youtu.be/XL4ugTEaHLs