COMMITTEE UPDATE

Alexis Oosterhoff • May 28, 2018

It’s been a busy couple of months for AURA and its membership.

WORLD TRAIL CHAMPIONSHIP

In May, Lou Clifton (12:09:23), Robyn Bruins (12:09:39), Gill Fowler (12:13:49), David Turnbull (12:25:13) and Jessica Schluter (12:36:08) represented Australia at the 2018 World Trail Championships in Penyagolosa, Spain and did our nation proud. A huge congratulations to them all for finishing strongly and within 30min of each other.

I spoke on Tuesday night with David (team captain) about the event, and he had nothing but good things to say about the event organisation and the very tough course: at 88kms with 5000m of ascent, it didn’t look on paper like a tough one, but in his words, it was “brutal” and “technical as … !”

In the lead-up to the event, in addition to the event briefings, each national team received an individual briefing on drug testing, and was advised that the top male and female ranked runners would be tested (in our case, that was Lou and David). They were both required to give blood samples. David stated he was grateful to have undertaken the ASADA online training before attending the event because it gave him a solid understanding of both his and the tester’s responsibilities, and also resulted in him being a lot more informed about the risks inherent in using off-the-shelf supplements when it comes to drug testing. I would encourage all members to have a read of our announcement published back in February (2018) about anti-doping, and strongly recommend that everyone does the ASADA Level 1 & 2 courses, you’ll learn a lot.

AUSTRALIAN RUNNING FESTIVAL

You may have read our notice posted following the Australian Running Festival 50km event held in Canberra on 15 April (2018). As the AURA National Championship 50km race, AURA was asked for advice on how to manage results when a large number of participants were unfortunately directed the wrong way early in the race. While the three lead men went the right way, the lead female group and a large contingent of runners behind them ran up to an additional 6km. This not only impacted the outcome of the female championship results, but also meant that many other participants chasing qualification times for events such as Comrades were affected.

The outcome of the results and the reasoning is discussed in the notice. We fielded numerous calls and emails from participants expressing their disappointment at the race organisation. ARF organisers were extremely open in their communication with us both during and after the race, and sent us a very detailed response about what happened on the day including addressing a number of the concerns that we raised. They have committed to making a number of changes for future championship events, including:

Providing a bike for both the lead male and lead female groups, rather than just the one lead bike.
Better briefings provided to volunteers, including a full walk-through of the course with key volunteers the week before the event.

In terms of the outcome of the AURA Championship, 1st place was jointly awarded to Larissa Tichon and Rachel Glasson, and third place to Alena Scurrah. A second 1st place trophy is being manufactured for Rachel. ARF agreed to award both Larissa and Rachel the 1st place prize money.

As to whether this event will be awarded the AURA Championships in future years, we will take everything that happened this year into consideration when making that decision.

CHANGE OF DATE FOR 2019 WORLD 24H CHAMPIONSHIP

The date for the 2019 World 24h Championship has been moved forward to May of that year, and will be held in Austria. As a result, applications for the team will now open on 17 December (2018), and close on 13 January (2019).

Also, a reminder the selections for the 2018 World 100km Championships to be held on 8 September in Sveti Martin na Muri Croatia are currently open and will close on 11 June, the day after the Australian 100km Championships on the Gold Coast. The team will be announced on 18 June.

2018 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

I’d like to acknowledge the results of the three AURA National Championship events held this to date year:

2018 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS (FEMALE)

Title	Event	1st	2nd	3rd
Trail (short)	Two Bays 14/1/18	Natasha Fraser 4:49:14	Amelia Griffith 5:10:15	Bronwyn Young 5:29:56
48 Hour	Canberra 48h 16/3/17	Kerrie Williamson 322.011 km	Cheryl Symons 304.246 km	Annabel Hepworth 276.824 km
50km	Canberra Ultra Marathon 15/4/18	Jointly awared to: Larissa Tichon 4:00:11 and Rachel Glasson 4:09:09		Alena Scurrah 4:28:52
100km	Gold Coast 100 10/6/18	Emilie Tan 8:33:17	Barbara Fieberg 8:51:39	Anya Mullin 10:17:07
24 Hour	Adelaide 24h 14/7/18	Heather Hawkins 171.615 km	Tia Jones 134.200 km	Cherie Rothery 103.400 km
Trail (long)	Blackall 100 20/10/17	Carmen Atkinson 12:35:14	Alena Scurrah 12:50:31	Chrissy Redwood 12:54:05

2018 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS (MALE)

Title	Event	1st	2nd	3rd
Trail (short)	Two Bays 14/1/18	Majell Backhausen 4:15:56	Ashley Bennett 4:30:27	Kay Bretz 4:36:55
48 Hour	Canberra 48h 16/3/17	Kevin Muller 340.002 km	Luke Mulley 310.456 km	David Billett 284.475 km
50km	Canberra Ultra Marathon 15/4/18	Vladimir Shatrov 3:05:12	Brendan Davies 3:08:42	Barry Keem 3:11:38
100km	Gold Coast 100 10/6/18	Darryl Hill 7:18:12	Andrew Heyden 7:37:42	Kevin Muller 7:53:45
24 Hour	Adelaide 24h 14/7/18	John Yoon 245.603 km	Brendan Davies 224.814 km	Darren Linney 214.665 km
Trail (long)	Blackall 100 20/10/17	Daniel Williams 10:25:34	Luke Pryor 11:58:39	Michael Bray 11:59:15

And don’t forget the upcoming additional National Championship events:

100km @ Gold Coast 100 on 10 June.
24 Hour @ Adelaide 24h on 14 July.
Trail (long course) @ Blackall 100 on 20 October.

VOLUNTEER UPDATE

Many thanks to Dan Symonds for taking on the merchandise role. Shirts/Singlets/Buffs & Caps are now with Dan (located in Brisbane). You can purchase any of these items through the AURA shop.

Alexis Oosterhoff
Vice President, AURA

< Older Post

Newer Post >

AUTRA News Report 11-09-2025

By Kate Dzienis • September 11, 2025

Run The River Half, Qld Murphys Creek Challenge, Qld Lighthorse Ultra, WA Kunanyi Trail Series, Rialannah, Tas Upcoming Events WEEKLY NEWS REPORT FOR 12-09-2025 As always, we're continuously on the hunt for your stories and reports, so get those race reports and photographs in to ultramag@autra.asn.au with the following information: Word document, single spaced Include the name of the event, the date and the location anywhere in the report (just a bullet point at the top is great) Please attach photographs to the email – do not put images in the body of your Word doc. You’ll just get me emailing you back asking for the photos sent in the correct way! As many photos as possible. With our new website, it’s now easier than ever to include a nice gallery in each race report No PDFs please And remember, it doesn’t have to be about an AUTRA-listed event specifically! You just have to be an AUTRA member for the 2025 year. Also too, if you’ve run in a non-AUTRA listed event anywhere on home soil or internationally, we’d love to include your race results and experience in our Member Updates, so please do reach out to us via email to kate.dzienis@autra.asn.au If any corrections need to be made in any of the results listed below, please alert me via email.

Team Manager 2025 IAU Asian and Oceania 100K Championships

By Gary Mullins • September 8, 2025

Location : Bangkok, Thailand Dates : November 21 - 24 2025 Role Type : Volunteer Position Time Commitment : Pre event planning + Travel Application Deadline : 17th September 2025 Thank you for your interest in supporting the Australian team for the 2025 IAU Asian 100k Championships. This role goes far beyond logistics. It’s about leadership, inclusion, and creating a positive, empowering environment for athletes competing on the world stage. AUTRA is committed to opening doors for those outside traditional pathways. We strongly encourage applications from coaches, former athletes, club leaders, volunteers, and passionate community members. You don’t need to have served on a board or managed a team before as we’re looking for people who genuinely care, are highly organised, and can proudly represent our athletes and country. Role Overview As Team Manager, you’ll work closely with AUTRA President Gary Mullins and Vice President Geoff Russell to prepare and support the national team before and during the championship. Pre-Departure Australia Act as the main contact for selected athletes and crew Assist with final entry forms and travel planning Prepare a Championships Agenda in alliance with the Team Managers Agreement Document Coordinate flights, uniforms, and team communications Help identify and organise crew support Attend online team planning meetings On the Ground in Thailand Be present and ready as athletes arrive Ensure all athlete needs are met so they can focus fully on their race Attend all technical meetings and represent the team professionally Coordinate team attendance at the opening and closing ceremonies Ensure the team and crew are prepared, organised, and calm Address any issues that arise with efficiency and discretion Provide hands on leadership and moral support throughout the race Support Provided Accommodation in Bangkok for 3 - 4 nights will be provided by AUTRA An official team uniform will be supplied A volunteer allowance of $1500 will be provided to acknowledge your time and service during the championship period. What You’ll Need Excellent communication and interpersonal skills Strong organisational ability under pressure A calm, inclusive, and athlete first mindset Commitment to AUTRA’s Code of Conduct Member of AUTRA Applying To apply for the role of Team Manager please CLICK HERE and fill out the Application Form. Applications Close at 5pm 17th September 2025. Selection Process Following the application deadline, the AUTRA Committee will review all submissions and select the most suitable candidate. All applicants will be contacted by Gary Mullins within 7 days of applications closing. Gary Mullins AUTRA President