Annual Report 2014 Message from the Australian Sports Commission (ASC—funded, non—Winning Edge sports) It has been another significant year for the Australian Sports Commission and the sports network as we continue working together to encourage all Australians to experience the joy of sport. The sporting field is where friendships are formed, life skills are learned and heroes are made — and this is why in 2013–14 the Australian Government invested almost $120 million in our national sporting organisations despite a challenging economic environment. In the past year the ASC has worked with sports to reform their governance structures and develop strategic and commercial capabilities. The ASC is determined to create better businesses — ones that will thrive in the years ahead — and we are leading the way with a lean and agile operating model and ongoing commitment to our own good governance. One of the highlights of 2013–14 was the Australian Government’s announcement of the Sporting Schools program. This $100 million program, which builds upon the successful Active After-school Communities program, will commence in 2015 and reach more than 850,000 children. It will allow the sports to boost their participation numbers and is a significant endorsement of the importance of community sport to the Government. Other highlights in 2013–14 have included: Community Coaching General Principles — a free online training course that provides coaches with the basic skills they need. Grants programs — a number of national grant programs were delivered to improve the participation of people from under-represented groups. The ASC also continues to pursue success on the world stage — both in Olympic and non- Olympic sports — to deliver Australians the exceptional performances they crave. There have been few periods in Australia’s sporting history filled with so much activity or promise, and on behalf of the ASC I thank you for your hard work and support. You continue to prove your capacity to succeed in an ever-changing sporting landscape, and I look forward to working with you in the future. John Wylie AM Chair Australian Sports Commission WINNING PARTNERSHIP The Australian Sports Commission proudly supports Orienteering Australia The Australian Sports Commission is Orienteering Australia is one of the Australian Government agency many national sporting organisations that develops, supports and invests that has formed a winning in sport at all levels in Australia. partnership with the Australian Orienteering Australia has worked Sports Commission to develop its closely with the Australian Sports sport in Australia. Commission to develop orienteering from community participation to high-level performance. AUSTRALIAN SPORTS COMMISSION www.ausport.gov.au ORIENTEERING VICTORIA Orienteering Western Australia Partners and Supporters 2014 Contents page President’s Report 2 Management and Administration 4 Finance 8 International Relations 9 Technical and Competition 11 Media and Communications 18 Development and Participation 20 High Performance and Coaching 25 Mountain Bike Orienteering 40 The Australian Orienteer 43 Orienteering Australia Awards 44 Appendix 1 - National Results 2014 49 Appendix 2 - National Teams/Squads 2014 55 Appendix 3 - Office Bearers 2014 59 Appendix 4 - Financial Report 2014 61 President’s Report here has been a lot to be positive about in Australian A major focus of the Australian Sports Commission Torienteering in the last year. The highlight was in the coming years will be the new Sporting Schools our hosting of a senior international competition for the program. It remains to be seen how this will play out in first time in 15 years (technically this was just into 2015 practice, but for the moment it ties in well with our desire but it is still worth writing about here). It has also been to bring a younger generation (and their families) into pleasing to see many of the sport’s initiatives to improve orienteering, something which is very important for the participation bearing fruit, and to see our strengthening longer-term future of the sport. This will also place a lot and restructuring of our high performance programs of demand on our ability to train and provide coaches begin to have an effect, too. and instructors, but there has been a marked surge of interest in this area in the last year (including a very The staging of the opening rounds of the World Cup successful workshop run by Nick Dent in January) and I in conjunction with the Oceania Championships in am optimistic about our ability to effectively service that Tasmania in early January was a highlight on several demand. counts. It was our first opportunity in an orienteering generation to see the best in the world on our turf and An area where strategic work over the last couple marvel at just how good the best of them are (just over 6 of years is beginning to get results has been in high minutes per kilometre on Coles Bay?). It was also the first performance. A great deal of work was done under opportunity for our best orienteers to compete against the leadership of Lance Read, as Director (High the best in the world on their home turf, and several of Performance), in late 2013 and early 2014 to get a proper them gave very good accounts of themselves, led by high performance structure, including a range of squads, Hanny Allston, Julian Dent and Rachel Effeney. Last, but into place. Much of this is work where the payoff will be by no means least, it further reinforced Tasmania’s well- long-term rather than short-term, but there were still a deserved reputation for staging high-quality major events. number of very pleasing results in the last year. These I continue to marvel at what they are able to achieve from included Hanny Allston achieving two top-fifteen places one of Australia’s smaller orienteering populations, and at the World Championships in Italy, Hanny and Vanessa Bernard Walker and his team deserve a great deal of Round getting our first top-ten World Cup results for credit for making the week possible. several years, our men being promoted a division at WOC, and the string of top-twenty results from Brodie There has been a lot of investment (thanks to a Nankervis at the Junior World Championships in Bulgaria. large extent to the support of the Australian Sports Mountain bike orienteering occupies more of a niche but Commission) in strengthening participation over the continues to produce some decent results, particularly at last few years. Whilst not every initiative has succeeded, junior level. plenty of them have, and it has been particularly good to see the growth in urban and near-urban series, such as the sprint series in several states, as well as the likes of the Melbourne Bush series in Victoria – demonstrating the strong demand for orienteering close to where people live. The final 2014 numbers aren’t available at the time of writing but I am hopeful that this will be the year when national participation topped the 100,000 figure (and, if it hasn’t done it in 2014, then that 2015 will be the year). Increases in participation haven’t yet flown through as strongly to traditional bush events, although the numbers were good in Tasmania, and it was also excellent to see the 2014 Australian Championships week feature the best turnout yet for an event in Western Australia, as well as a good week’s orienteering at Easter in New South Wales. 2 Orienteering Australia Annual Report 2014 Technology is continuing to play an increasing role Our administration and governance are a less in many aspects of orienteering. We continue to work on glamorous part of the sport, although one that the the effective implementation of the Eventor system for Australian Sports Commission takes a close interest managing event calendars, memberships and entries. We in. We generally perform well in this area, within the are aware that the useability of the system still needs some constraints of being a relatively small sport with limited work – and will make this a priority during this year – but resources, although there are always things we can are already seeing considerable benefits, particularly at improve. Ultimately, I see good governance not as being the back end when it comes to aspects such as being an end in itself, but as facilitating our ability to effectively able to communicate effectively with event entrants (no decide what we should be doing, getting the right people need for an event secretary to maintain a mailing list any in place to do them, and ensuring that they have the more) and being able to track participation statistics. We resources they need to do them (not that we always have also transitioned to a new website during the last succeed on the last count). year, although this also remains a work in progress, and there are interesting projects under way making use of I would like to conclude, as always, by thanking all of mobile phone apps to run what’s effectively a permanent you who contribute to making the sport in Australia what course without needing to put any controls out. Perhaps it is. In particular, I would like to thank the members of the most exciting aspects of technology, though, are the Orienteering Australia Board, several of whom have the ways in which they allow us to present orienteering had carriage of some challenging projects over the last to the outside world – most graphically demonstrated year, and our paid staff who all perform well above and during the Australian Schools Championships (long the beyond the call of what we’re paying them for. Beyond best spectator day of the year in Australian orienteering) that, the sport would not function without the hundreds, when we were putting out a live feed including video if not thousands, of you who contribute to making things footage from people (mostly recent graduates) running happen at the state and local level and our thanks go out with the competitors.