WEEKLY NEWS BRIEF – 22/1/2019

Kate Dzienis • January 23, 2019

Australia Day Ultra, WA
Points competition summary

The running of the Australia Day Ultra was held on Saturday (January 19) down in the coastal town of Australind, just 160kms south of Perth. The race is known to feature many city and suburban Perth runners who venture down to race in either the 100km, 75km, 50km and 25km events, but conditions this year were extremely challenging, with temperatures soaring in the mid to high-30s.

The 100km started midnight Friday-Saturday, and it was AURA’s Margie Hadley from Henley Brook who put on a stellar performance and took First Female with 8:51:00 flat in the hot weather.

Karnup’s Jen Millum claimed third podium finish after collecting a time of 9:50:07 and looked strong all the way.

Big congratulations to all those who ran in the 100km including Andrew McLeish (12:26:08), Sue Robertson (14:01:23), Richard Avery and Julia Mackay-Koelen, and to those who entered the 75km – Graham Bell (9:04:41) and Sarah Farrell.

In the 50km event, Tony Smith from Tapping claimed First Male after a much sought-after and successful 3:27:22 finish time.

Smith has run the ADU since its inaugural year in 2015, and every year just getting faster. This year though, he says his race was completely different in comparison to all previous ones.

“Conditions for the start were perfect (3am start for the 50km), just cool enough to need a long sleeve top if you were spectating but just right for a singlet or t-shirt,” he recaps.

“My race plan was a little different from normal; I usually start off conservatively and then try and negative split, but after chatting with a few experienced ultra runners they convinced me to ‘roll the dice’ and go out hard for a PB to see what happens.

“The challenge was accepted!

“My previous PB for 50km was a few years ago at Bunbury with a 3:32 plus change. I’ve run close to it a few times, but never managed to break 3:30:00.

“ADU this year was one of those races where everything aligned and I was pretty comfortable to hold low 4min/km pace until almost the finish. The pace dropped a little in the last few kilometres but by then I knew the magic sub 3:30:00 was mine.

“It was a five minute PB and even more rewarding was going through the marathon distance at 2:52:00; none of this would have been possible without the organisers and volunteers that helped plan, organise and executive one of my favourite events of the year.”

Third Male went to Andrew ‘Felix’ Poli from Ellenbrook who finished with a time of 3:47:53 whilst First Female was claimed by Jackie Kellerman thanks to a strong run where she finished in 3:46:49.

Both runs by Poli and Kellerman were PBs for the distance.

Congratulations to all AURA members who ran the 50km including one of the ADU’s race organisers Shaun Kaesler (3:55:14), Andrew Cohen (4:24:38), John Nuttall (5:04:42), Frank Chauveau (6:55:21) and Sally Chetwin.

The next events on the AURA calendar include the SA 100km Track Championships in Adelaide, SA and the AAA Racing Hill Climb Challenge (Round 2) in Dayboro, Qld this weekend on January 26 and the Cradle Mountain Run in Cradle Mountain, Tasmania on February 2.

POINTS COMPETITION SUMMARY

Here is a summary of the points competition and the top 10 AURA members! Congratulations to everyone who put in amazing performances in 2018!

1 Brendan Davies $1500 cash
2 Tia Jones $800 cash
3 Stephen Redfern $500 cash
4 Kevin Muller $400 cash
5 Jennifer Millum $300 cash
6 Margaret Hadley $200 cash
7 John David Yoon $100 cash
8 Cheryl Symons $50 AURA store credit
9 Nikki Wynd $50 AURA store credit
10 Ewan Horsburgh $50 AURA store credit

Pictured: From left to right Andrew ‘Felix’ Poli, Tony Smith and second place getter in the 50km Ryan Shand. Photograph – Serendipity Images.

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2026 AGM Notice (15 April 2026)

By Dave Martin • March 14, 2026

AUTRA’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Wednesday 15 April 2026

AUTRA statement regarding Snowies Trail Run Festival

March 12, 2026

AUTRA has been in direct contact with the organisers of the Snowies Trail Run Festival, In2Adventure, regarding a recent situation involving an athlete and the event’s in‑person safety briefing requirements. In2Adventure has confirmed that the situation was discussed directly with the athlete at the time. From In2Adventure’s account, and for the purpose of clarifying the public record, AUTRA notes the following points: At no stage was the athlete prevented from breastfeeding at the event. The organiser states that the following options were offered to enable the athlete to participate while still meeting safety requirements: a quiet and private space where she could breastfeed while still being present at the briefing; the option to receive the required briefing at the 30 km start line after the start; and the option to change her registration to the 21 km event, where the briefing is conducted on the start line. At no stage prior to event registration on Saturday night did the athlete contact the organiser to advise of her situation or request alternative arrangements, which limited what could be put in place at the time. Face‑to‑face safety briefings have always been a requirement for In2Adventure events due to the remote and higher‑risk nature of the trails. AUTRA was aware that in‑person briefings were used and had not raised concerns about that general approach. The organiser has indicated that this requirement is driven by safety, duty‑of‑care and insurance obligations, and follows previous experience where remote or online briefings resulted in athletes starting events without critical safety information. The organiser maintains that the event was not conducted in a manner that was intended to be non‑inclusive, inflexible or discriminatory, and that decisions made on the day were based solely on safety requirements that apply equally to all participants. AUTRA’s aim in issuing this statement is solely to clarify the context and ensure that the public record reflects the information provided to us by the organiser.