Join orienteers from across Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia for an an action-packed seven-event program, Oceania 2026 will showcase Canberras’ most varied and exciting orienteering terrains. Experience a weekend of running in the rugged beauty of Namadgi National Park; take on the steep, physically demanding and varied terrain of Stromlo; enjoy the midweek action with the Australian Schools Orienteering Championships (ASOC) and the accompanying Flight of the Bogong races; and finally, switch gears for fast, technical sprint racing through the intricate buildings, courtyards and route-choice challenges of ANU.

And for the elites, the stakes are even higher — WOC places are on the line! The winners of the Men’s and Women’s 21E Middle and Long Distance races will earn automatic selection for the 2027 World Orienteering Championships in Hungary.

Diverse terrain. International racing. An unforgettable week.
Get your entry in before it’s too late!

oceania2026.orienteering.asn.au

The post Last Chance to Enter Oceania 2026 appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

Orienteering Australia updates

• The Board received an update from the 10 August Orienteering Australia Stakeholders meeting.
• NOL travel reimbursement arrangements are now in effect.
• OA is reviewing its Volunteer Policy, including a proposed volunteer register and annual reporting on volunteer numbers and training.
• The updated OA Operations Guide will apply for Oceania.
• State levies and fees will increase in line with previous advice.

OACT travel expense support increased

• The Board approved an increase in travel expense support from 18 August 2026.
• Approved travel will now be reimbursed at 60 cents per kilometre, or $1.00 per kilometre when towing a pre-approved trailer.
• The relevant information on the OACT website will be updated.

ACT Government equipment grants

• ACT Sport and Recreation grant applications for non-consumable equipment are opening soon.
• Ideas already raised include mapboards, control stands and surveyor flags.
• Members and clubs will be invited to suggest other equipment that could benefit OACT activities.

Remote Area First Aid

• The funded Remote Area First Aid course is expected to run in November.
• Further information will be provided when arrangements are confirmed.

Ski-O wraps up

• The 2026 Ski-O event has now finished.
• The event returned a profit and the Board thanked Marina and the team for the work involved in making it happen.
• The Board also noted interest in how Ski-O may develop in future.

Learn to O

• Learn to O continues to show positive results, with up to 11 participants continuing to attend.
• Supporting pathways for new participants remains an important part of OACT’s participation work.

Summer Series and Street-O

• Planning is underway for the coming Summer Series, with seven locations to be allocated to clubs.
• The Mapping Committee is working through the remaining venues and mapping requirements.
• Work is also continuing on the proposed Street-O relaunch for summer 2026–27, including event format, management and the possible use of MapRun for mass starts.
• Promoting team entries remains part of the wider participation work.

Mapping

• Mapping work continues across sprint, Metro, ACT League and MTBO events.
• Commodore Lane is being investigated as a possible event area, with mapping and permissions work underway.
• New maps are also being prepared for summer events.
• OACT’s first drone-assisted map was used at Foxlow.

Coach-in-Residence

• Scottish coach Frank Townley is expected to arrive on 2 September.
• Planning continues for his Coach-in-Residence period and the coaching activities and opportunities he will support while in the ACT.

ACT uniform

• Available to order through our website.

Refund policy

• The Board agreed to change the timing in OACT’s refund policy so that cancellations align with the relevant event entry closing date.
• The website will be updated to reflect the change.

Oceania 2026

• Planning for Oceania continues as the carnival approaches.
• Mapping, event operations and other preparations are progressing.

Next meeting: Monday 14 September 2026.

The post Board Shorts – August 2026 appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

We have a deal with Wear it! to get a bulk order of shirts at a discounted price. If we place this order by COB Monday, they should arrive in time for our home ground Oceania carnival. You and your relay teammates can represent the ACT in coordinated style!

To save $5 and have it in time for Oceania, order before 4pm Tuesday 25 August.

Sizing

The shirts come in a womens cut and unisex cut. This is the same shirt supplier as for Oceania 2026 and the 2025 Australian Orienteering Championships in Brisbane. If you have one of those shirts, pick the same size for this! 

Cost

$60 each, $55 for youth sizes.

After this bulk order is placed, the shirts will still be available to buy directly from Wear it! for $65 + shipping. 

The post New OACT Shirts – Order Now For Discount appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

The terrain is classic, fast running, Canberra spur gully with small areas of rock detail and some thicker tea tree vegetation. Longer hard courses cross areas of subtle contour detail and runners will visit complex erosion gullies. Vegetation mapping has been updated by David and Matt Stocks for this event. The previous map of the area can be viewed here.

Courses

Course details are as follows:

Entries

Pre-entry only. Entries close 11:59pm Wednesday 19 August. 
Late entry will be available available for Hard 4, Moderate 2, Easy and Very Easy until 5:00pm Saturday 22 August, +50% late entry fee applies.
Enter here.

The post ACT League #9, Foxlow, Sunday 23 August appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

Australian and New Zealand school students will contest the championships which will be part of the 2026 Oceania Orienteering Championships, being held in Canberra over nine days in September-October. Each Australian state and territory can send a team of up to 20 students, along with two New Zealand teams of 20 students.

Congratulations to the following students on their selection.

Team officials are Sarah Bruce and Michael Radajewski (managers), and David Stocks (coach).

The post ACT Schools Team for ASOC 2026 appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

All students in the ACT, as well as those close by in NSW, are very welcome to attend. Entries will close on 30 August.

See the information flyer for class details.

Enter here

Public courses will also be available for others starting after 10:30am. 

The post ACT Schools Orienteering Championships, 5 September appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

We bring very sincere apologies to everyone who planned their trip for Sunday only or had different plans for Saturday.
This decision is not ideal, but should benefit the majority of participants more than canceling the event entirely.
We really hope you still will be able to make it to the event on Saturday and enjoy the only Ski-O event in Australia in safe and enjoyable weather conditions:)!

Online Entries will be accepted here until Friday 23:59 https://eventor.orienteering.asn.au/Events/Show/23595
We very much looking forward to Welcome you at the beautiful and warm Nordic Shelter on Saturday starting 9am.

Marina and Ski-O Team

The post Ski-O Update – Event Moved to Saturday 8 August appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

The Jim Sawkins Classic is a Handicap competition with two Divisions:

• Division 1, on ACT League course Hard 1, an open competition for all ages and genders.
• Division 2, on all other ACT League Hard courses, a restricted competition for competitors of all genders, but excluding men aged between 21 and 34.

Competitors’ times are ‘corrected’ in accordance with the same Age/Gender factors used for ACT League and Runners Shop Twilight Series competitions to determine the winners.

The top three placings in each division are below, and complete results for both divisions are available here.

Jim Sawkins Division 1

Jim Sawkins Division 2

Results from the event are available here.
Livelox GPS tracking is available here.
John Harding’s photos from the event can be viewed here.

Current standings of the 2026 ACT Junior League are available here.
The current standings for the 2026 ACT League are available here.

The post Jim Sawkins Classic 2026 Results appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

Entries

Event entries are open here until Wednesday 29 July. Metro Series season pass holders have already been entered into their usual Metro Series course for this event. To change to a different course for this event (eg. to move form a Moderate to a Hard course), login to eventor, visit the event page, and click ‘change class’, select your new course, and confirm changes, no entry fee is payable for season pass holders. Changes must be made by Wednesday 29 July.

Start Times

There will be a mass start at 10:30am for all courses, all runners should assemble in the start area by 10:15am.. Competitors may start any time between 10.00am and 11.30am if they do not want to participate in the mass start.

This event is also an ASOC trial for ACT athletes. Competitors in Junior Boys and Junior Girls will have allocated start times between 10:15am and 10:30am. Senior Boys and Seniors Girls will run in the mass start.

Split Start Times: Split Start times will be given to competitors with young children and for whom one of the parents must be present to look after the children as no other option is available. The first competitor will be permitted to start from 10.00am using a punching start and the second competitor will start as soon as the first competitor is available for child minding.

Courses

Provisional course details are as follows:

The Jim Sawkins Classic

The Jim Sawkins Classic was created in 2008 to commemorate the life of Jim Sawkins, a stalwart of the Red Roos club. Jim began orienteering around 1980 and was a highly successful competitor winning many major titles including the 2005 and 2006 Australian 3-Days, the ACT Orienteer of the Year in 2005 and the 2000-01 Runners Shop Twilight Series. Jim Sawkins died while orienteering on Sunday 4 June 2006 at Goorooyaroo, after being the organiser and course planner at Farrer Ridge on the previous day.

The Jim Sawkins Classic includes a Handicap competition with two Divisions:

• Division 1, on ACT League course Hard 1, an Open competition for all ages and both genders.
• Division 2, on ACT League other Hard courses, a Restricted competition for competitors of both genders, but only for Men aged under 21 and 35 and over and all Women.

Competitors’ times are ‘corrected’ in accordance with the same Age/Gender factors used for ACT League and Runners Shop Twilight Series competitions to determine the winners. Thus competitors need to be sure that their correct age and gender are recorded in the Eventor.

The complete list of previous winners is available here.

The post Entries Open for Jim Sawkins Classic, Saturday 1 August appeared first on Orienteering ACT.

Board Update

• The Board welcomed Natalie Miller to fill one of the vacant Board positions left after the AGM.
• There is still one Board vacancy available for future appointment.

OA participation funding opportunities

• The Board discussed new participation funding available through OA from the Australian Sports Commission.
• Nina is following up with OA to clarify what OACT may be able to access and what restrictions apply.
• One idea discussed was linking future funding to OA’s Participation Plan and OACT’s Strategic Plan.

MTBO participation ideas

• There is strong interest in developing MTBO participation options with a focus on women and girls, including camp or training-based activities.
• Permanent MTBO courses around Australia were also discussed, likely using MapRun.

Government applications and compliance

• The Board approved submission of the EO’s ACT Government State Sporting Organisations application and thanked Phil for his work on it.
• The Board also noted increasing compliance requirements for major events, including future work on terrorism risk management and traffic management planning.

Remote Area First Aid course

• A Remote Area First Aid course will be coordinated later in the year once John Shelton Agar returns from leave.

Capital O 2027

• Planning for Capital O 2027 is progressing well, with the main Saturday and Sunday events to be based in Cooma.
• There is also discussion about whether to include a Monday morning event, noting that the Canberra Day public holiday does not apply in every state.

Mapping update

• A broad mapping update was provided for coming sprint, metro and ACT League events.
• Work is underway or being explored on a number of areas, including local sprint maps, Palmerville, Northern Narrabundah Hill, Fisher Ponds, Evatt Creek, Majura Pines, Holder Wetland, Cotter Picnic Area, Molonglo Pines, Queanbeyan Escarpment, Whitecliffs, Poppet Hill, Kowen Forest, Googong North and Elm Grove.

Oceania 2026

• Planning for Oceania is continuing steadily.
• Entries opened on 1 June.

Next Meetings

• The next Board meeting will be held on Monday 17 August.
• The Board also noted future meeting dates of Monday 14 September, Monday 19 October and Monday 23 November.

The post Board Shorts – June 2026 appeared first on Orienteering ACT.