Norths – Australian club champions!

North Canberra are the new national cross country champions. On 1 September, our open men's team of Scott McTaggart, Trent Harlow and Erwin McRae won the club's event at the national championships in a close and exciting tussle with the strong Victorian Glenhuntly club.

Held over a gruelling twelve kilometre course in Tasmania, the Norths runners revelled in the cold conditions finishing seventh, eighth and tenth respectively. In what was a strong field, our runners combined with Adam Leane to bring home silver for the ACT in the state teams championships.

Congratulations also to Andrea Braakhuis who finished 25^th in the open women's eight kilometre event. Andrea formed part of the strong ACT women's team which won bronze for their efforts in the state teams event.

Try for the quinella?

Having secured the cross-country crown, the next test could be the track and field club championships. I've looked at the results from previous club championship events, and I reckon we could field a pretty competitive men's team.

The event is traditionally held at the end of the National championships. If there appears to be sufficient interest, we'll put a team together to contest for the right to represent the ACT at the last meeting before Christmas – 15 December. So keep those dates in mind.

Recent achievements

Paul Crake had two great races in Europe leading up to the World Mountain Running Championship in Italy on 15 September. In Italy, Paul finished 6th in the Susa World Mountain Running Grand Prix 15 kms won by world champion Jonathon Wyatt of New Zealand. Two weeks earlier he was 9th in the Matterhornlauf international in Switzerland.

Paul continued his good form through into the world championships. He was first Australian home in 17^th place, a huge improvement on last year's 56^th position. Paul's report on this race appears later in the newsletter. Congratulations from all at North Canberra, Paul.

Shaun Creighton briefly returned to Australia for a crack at the 10km race at the Goodwill Games in Brisbane. Shaun finished seventh in a time of 29:06.70.

Dave Osmond headed up north to contest the Noosa half marathon championships, held on 26 August. Dave came home in a creditable 14^th place with a time of 1:10:25.0

Congratulations to Scott Crowe who was awarded an ACT Academy of Sport scholarship. It's great to see that even though there is no longer a track and field program in ACTAS, it is still possible to get support on an individual basis. We're right behind you in your quest to get to World Junior's this year, Scott.

New club captains

Jeff Wray and Pat Mossop have been appointed club captains for the coming season. Be prepared to have them chasing you to take part in relays We fielded a few relays last season but this year we're aiming to double that number, particularly now that the 4 x 400m event has been put back till after the individual 800m.

Jeff and Pat are also the first contact for any athlete who has a concern they'd like to raise – whether its about the program, the officials, the club, or athletics in general.

Cross country season ends

North Canberra finished the winter cross country season on a strong note, with our A team of Scott McTaggart, Dave Osmond, Chris Butler and Peter Haynes finishing in second place after leading the race for the first two legs. Peter's efforts were undoubtedly enhanced by the loan of a racing top from Danny O'Dea. Scott and Dave backed up to form a second team for Norths with Daniel Cook and Danny O'Dea.

As this newsletter went to print, there was still some dispute on the correct pointscore, but in at least three events Norths finished second in the pointscores, a marked improvement on last season. It has been pleasing to see a consistent turn-out for events this year though there is plenty of room for improvement next year.

But there is no doubt about the winner of the distance runner of the year trophy – Dave Osmond. Dave had a great season, missing only the marathon event, and finished with 122 points, 15 clear of the second placegetter. Scott McTaggart was in 5^th place on 78 points. Others to score points for Norths over the season were Peter Haynes (50), Phillip McGilvray (30), David Kilham (21), Trent Harlow (19), Erwin McRae (16), Danny O'Dea (13), Chris Butler (5) and Graeme Small (4).

Andrea Braakhuis finished 7^th in the women's distance runner of the year award with 72 points.

'New look' track and field calendar

A number of changes have been made to the interclub competition for the 2001-02 season. The main features are:

• there will be a Spring Personal Best Series over 4 weeks from late October for which individual pointscores will be kept, with a number of trophies to be awarded.
• a relay day has been sent down for 25 November. That's one for your diary, and you'll be hearing plenty more about it from your club captains as we get closer to that day.
• the interclub pointscore will not commence until the first January competition
• the competition schedule has been re-vamped and many changes have been made to the two programs that were used last year. The summer handbook is being printed and all registered athletes will receive one.

A number of new initiatives are being trialled this season and it is really important to receive your feedback on whether you like the changes or not. So if you have any comments –negative or positive – please pass them on to either of the club captains or to one of the committee members. That way we will know which initiatives NC should continue to support and which we should seek to change on your behalf.

The competitions that have been set down for October and November are listed in 'Coming Events' on page 3.

Member profile – Jeff Wray

Date of Birth: 16/3/76

Height: 171cm

Weight: 66kg

Occupation: Primary School Teacher (year 5 and PE at Forrest School)

Place of Birth: Melbourne

Residence: Evatt, ACT

Coach/previous coach (es): Its weird. I started with a coach in Adelaide (Toby Schreier) and then started coaching myself. I have had a lot of input from Peter Brennan (SA) and he still helps me a lot (usually in keeping me mentally under control), whilst former footy coach Rod Campbell and best mate Steve Prescott are huge influences. Since being in Canberra I have a lot of support from 3 coaches who help me (Robbie Bolton, John Tomilson and Phil Moore) and training partners, while Mark Hipworth in Melbourne is also a great support. In all honesty, I love it this way!

Events: 800m with the occasional 400m (and 550m in professional races)

PBs: 800m=1:53.4, 400m=50.2; both in 2001.

Year started athletics: 1994 when selected in South Australian Cross Country team

Greatest moment in athletics: A major professional race which I had focused my training on for the year, improved dramatically, won the race I wanted and 3^rd the next day, all two weeks before moving away from family and friends. It was the first time my parents (and Grandmother) had come to watch me compete as I never wanted them to watch me.

Worst moment in athletics: 1998 Stawell 550m final. It was my first major final and I had a shocker. I felt really embarrassed and disappointed at the time, but I now look at it as a major learning experience.

Short term goal(s) in athletics: I have times that I want to achieve (1:51, 49.5).

Long term goal(s) in athletics: Run on the national grand prix circuit, and gain respect from fellow competitors.

Other athletes you admire: I have never really had idols. I look up to people I am friends with and possibly compete with. I admire people who train really hard at something and achieve something that they have worked hard towards, and people I may have friendly rivalry with. I admire Switzerland's Andre Bucher, South Australians Michael Hane, Steve Thurston and Shane Thiele, Victorian rival David Haigh, and a list of Canberra 800m boys.

Snippets from the Grand Prix final

I suspect anyone sat in front of a tv probably had the best seat in the house for the GP final. It was all a bit too quick and a bit cool for me.

I flew down on Saturday, spent the morning walking around the markets looking for a backpack and a fleecy top. I needed the backpack to take the uniform that I was getting home in and the fleecy top to keep me warm – it was bloody freezing. I ventured out to the track and sat in the grandstand watching people train and set up the electronic timing gear. No one had a job for me so I finally got around to reading my book on Lachlan Jones (Walk a crooked mile). Tarby walked past and whispered "That's El Guerrouj" out there.

Shortly afterwards I met Andrew the Volunteer coordinator and was taken down to a room to get my gear. I couldn't believe it – a flashy backpack, shoes, socks, trackie pants, a t-shirt, fleecy top, spray jacket and a cap. Thankfully I'm a tight *(*(^%*% and didn't spend any money at the markets buying a fleecy top or backpack. I then disappeared looking for somewhere to get changed in. I ducked into Changeroom 3. It looked empty, but when I got inside there was an athlete stretching on the floor with a physio, coach and one other. They were very interested in my gear and what I was doing. We had a chat about quite a few things, the weather, the track, life after the final and next year.. When I put my shoes on without socks they were very surprised. "Didn't they give you socks?" the coach asked. They were from Morocco and he was a very fast 1500m runner.

The following day I was standing near the mixed zone and Cathy Freeman was ushered in. She looked in her normal confused state. "Where are we going?" she asked. I couldn't help myself and said "the track's just over there Cathy" She was being taken somewhere to sign autographs.

Summer registration

Registration fees for the coming track and field season are:

• Junior $40
• Senior $50
• Family $100
• Officials $10

Little athletics dual registrations

Agreement has been reached between ACT Athletics and ACT Little Athletics to simplify dual registration procedures for athletes. The procedures as they will apply for athletes registering for the summer season are:

• Registered little athletes in the U12 age group and above may register free with the senior body and need only pay the club fee ($5 in the case of North Canberra)
• Athletes who register first with North Canberra paying the full fee of $40 may register with a little athletics centre in the U12 age group or above, having the ACTLAA registration fee waived (i.e. the fee will be reduced by $30)
• Arrangements are also in place to cater for family membership registrations.
• Proof of registration is required
• While wearing of the senior club uniform is encouraged for dual-registered athletes, LA uniforms are acceptable provided the senior registration number is worn over the top of the LA number.

The new procedures are designed to simplify dual-registration and to reduce the cost to young athletes. There is now no upper age restriction on the arrangement, and it does not matter which club you register with first – only one peak body registration fee will be paid. At the end of the season, the peak body registration revenue from all dual-registered athletes will be shared equally between the two Associations.

If you have any queries about the new procedures, or are unsure how it applies to you, please contact our club registrar, Barbara Wagstaff.

Volunteering at the world champs

As some of you were aware, I headed over to the world track and field championships in Edmonton in early August. After having such an incredible time as a volunteer at the Sydney Olympics, I found it hard to say 'no' when I was approached to do the same task at the World's. And tacking a holiday in Alaska onto the end of it made it irresistable.

I knew it wouldn't be the same atmosphere as in Sydney, but I would be meeting up again with quite a few of the people I had met there. Well, it was certainly different and by the end of the first week I thought it had been a big mistake. But after the second week, when the transport arrangements started working properly, the food improved, and everything related to the job started to go smoothly, I thought maybe I hadn't been mad after all. So I've volunteered for Paris in 2003 (as long as I don't have to be able to speak French)!!

As usual, I didn't get to see many of the events. In fact, the only one I really sat down and watched properly was the women's hammer throw final - it was great watching Bronwyn Eagles get her bronze medal.

Without doubt, the highlight of the two weeks was the media 800m race, held on the last Friday of competition. By this stage, competition was down to one session a day so the morning was free - and the staff at the media centre where I was working organised the event. It seems a lot of the media fancied themselves as middle distance runners, as we had 12 heats of 15 runners! Everyone pitched in to make it a lot of fun, with Seiko providing electronic timing and photo finish printouts, and the main stadium announcer calling the races. Then at the end we'd organised a rather special trio to turn the tables on the newshounds and subject them to some searching post-event questions – Haile Gebrselassie, Bernard Barmasai and Reuben Kosgei took on the roles of reporters.

A post-event conference was held for the winners, with Haile leading off the questions. When it was thrown open to general questions, some wag asked the women's winner (16 year old Meagan Hazlewood who was a Canadian rep at the world youth champs and was working for CBC) how it felt to be the only Canadian medal winner from the champs! And the men's winner (a Spanish sports writer) was asked if he'd heard from Marie-Jose Perec recently. Not sure why he was supposed to know, but he entered into the spirit and quick as a flash responded, "Well I did have her phone number, but unfortunately I lost it and I haven't been able to talk to her for a couple of days". He got a resounding round of applause.

I was appointed chief judge of the 'best legs competition'. I was VERY disappointed in the standard of competition. I eventually awarded it to a Cuban guy who was working with the IAAF, but told him if he wanted to win again in Paris he'd need to shave down and I would definitely be in the market for a bit of bribery.

Other highlights from Edmonton were:

• Meeting Cathy Freeman and getting her autograph (photo included as proof)
• Getting to know a great bunch of Canadian volunteers
• Meeting Haile and getting his autograph and having my photograph taken with him. Unfortunately, I appear to have tossed the autograph out when I was packing up to come home. To take one of Michael Thompson's phrases - *(*(^%*%
• Being interviewed by the Edmonton Journal - they were doing a series on volunteers. They took the best ever photo of me – all you can see is a pair of glasses peering through a results pigeonhole with a bit of frizzy hair around the edges.
• Doing an interview for SBS. Well, it was a highlight once I was sure they'd edited out a couple of comments about the Aussie team which I certainly didn't want aired at home. Trouble was that at the time I was doing it I didn't realise it was SBS. I've still to see the interview - my husband taped it then came across to join me for 3 weeks, leaving it in the video. Needless to say, Chris taped over the top of it! But Mum's are wonderful people, and mine assures me she has a copy safe and sound and next time I go to Brisbane I'll be able to watch it!

I've put a couple of photos from Edmonton in this newsletter, but anyone interested in seeing a few more can go to the following website:

http://athletics.anu.edu.au/edmonton

Name the mascot competition

I couldn't resist this little guy when I saw him Edmonton. It's the new Norths relay mascot (check out the lettering down its arm) and it's already had its first outing – at the Carillon relays on 8 September. Before long, I'll have a go at creating a Norths uniform for it.

We need to give it a name. Send me your suggestions or pass them on to one of the other committee members. The person who suggests the best name will be given a NC rugby top.

World championships race report

Arte Terme, Italy, 16 September 2001

The course for world mountain running champs consisted of 2 laps with approximately 450m each of ascending and descending. Total distance was meant to be 12.9km but it seemed quite a bit longer. I think the measuring stick may have got stuck in the mud! The main concern was the extremely steep and muddy downhill which, as it turned out, claimed quite a few casualties!

The race began, as usual at a fast pace, with the Africans showing their fantastic track speed. It wasn't long before the climb began and the hustle and bustle for a bit of room began. By the top of the climb I had managed to pull through into the low 20s still feeling comfortable. It wasn't long before we were into the chaotic descent slipping and sliding down the track. All was going well as I continued to make up places, however it was difficult enough navigating one's way down without having to pass runners and my luck quickly came to an abrupt end. An African seemed to come across my path and I ended up taking us both out. Rest assured I did apologise, both then and after the race when in the first aid tent having our war wounds attended to!

I completed the descent in 9th place and began the roller-coaster ride of short ups and downs to the end of the first lap. The legs seemed to be in one piece, however the downhill had literally knocked the stuffing out of the body. I cruised along, so to speak, until nearing the end of the lap where I encountered a rather sharp corner which was more slippery than expected. Off I went again, this time into the crowd!

Into the second lap and some safe climbing. I settled into a group and wended my way to the top for the final time in preparation for the downhill. Fortunately I stayed on my feet for the descent and picked up a few places. I will admit there were a several sections of that downhill where fear started to set in, so much for the no fear mentality. Anyhow, onto the home straight and over the roller-coasters, remembering to slow for that corner. With several hundred metres to run I made a final surge over a technical section and found myself flat on my face. Well, what difference does one more fall make!

I finished in 17th position. Nevertheless I was very happy with the result. Quite a bit better than last year's effort (56th). Rest assured I only do this sort of punishment to the body every 2 years. World Champs is one of those races where you can't afford to hold back on the downhills. Am looking forward to next year's 12km of straight up!

Bits & Pieces

Extended insurance cover

All Norths members are now covered by a new Athletics Australia insurance scheme. I've briefly outlined the main features below. If you have any further queries relating to this, then I'd suggest contacting Ken Eynon in the ACT Athletics office (ph: 6247 1504). Ken has a copy of the complete insurance manual. Ken will also be able to assist anyone who needs to make a claim.

All registered members, participants trialling before becoming a member, coaches, voluntary workers, directors and officials of Athletics Australia and their affiliated state/territory associations, centres and clubs.

Cover is provided for injuries caused solely by active participation in officially organised events, practice and training sessions and official functions, including travelling to and from such events.

Summarised briefly, the benefits are:

• medical expenses – non-medicare expenses up to $5000 (net of private health refunds) e.g. physiotherapy, ambulance, dental, etc.
• loss of income – 80% of net weekly income up to $600 per week.
• death and permanent disability – maximum lump sum of $150,000.
• student assistance benefit – up to $300 per week for costs such as tutoring, travelling, etc
• household help allowance – up to $300 per week
• out of pocket expenses – up to $2000
• broken or fractured bones benefit – a lump sum benefit is payable for broken or fractured bones e.g.collarbone $200, jaw $500, finger $50, compound fracture of the leg $500.

Assistance needed at interclub

Ian Colquhoun has entered enthusiastically into his new role as the ACT's director of officials. Ian has come up with some excellent ideas for revitalising this area of athletics in Canberra and in return we need to give him our full support. This year we will be asking all members, or someone they nominate (parent, friend, whoever) to volunteer as an official just once during the season – though of course if you want to do more, that's fine.

Barbara Wagstaff will be coordinating our efforts with Ian. She'll be seeking you out over the coming weeks and will be looking to slot you into a time and task that you feel comfortable with. And Ian is putting in a great effort to ensure your help is appreciated and you are given the assistance you need if you are a first-timer.