VIC XC Junior Championship Report

Last weekend July 15/16, Falls Creek hosted the Victorian Junior State Cross Country Ski Championships. The event was wonderfully organised by Vic XC with great volunteers working hard to ensure both days ran smoothly. Nearly 40 young skiers took part in the races, over 50% more participants compared to 2022. There was also a great crowd turnout for the races shouting encouragement to athletes on all of the crucial points of the course, and some exciting commentary on the mic from announcer Charlie Hiam.

Saturday’s event was a Classic Sprint race, with each athlete competing in a qualification round, then battling it out in heats until there are a final 4 racers in each gender category racing for podium positions. The sprint course had a new hill this year, bringing an added challenge to the athletes that created some heated competition on crucial parts of the course, including the transition from the tough uphill into the steep downhill segment. Both the male and female finals had great displays of physical strength and technique on the different elements of the course, with many athletes staying close together on the initial uphill, and the winning athletes pushing ahead towards the final stages of the course. One of the closest races was the U16 girls, which was won by Caitlin Humphries after a tough battle for the podium positions all the way to the very end. The Open Junior (U20 and U18 combined) winners were national junior team athletes Maddie Hooker and Jayden Spring.

Jayden Spring leads the U18/U20 Sprint final. Photo by Falls Creek Alpine Resort.

Saturday Classic Sprint Results (full results on Alpine Timing)

The weather on Sunday really was absolute perfection for a distance race with warm blue skies and not a hint of wind. This year was the first year that both male and female categories raced the same distance, which has been a recent development on World Cup and other international races. In this race the longest distance was 7.5kms, and the twisty, turn-y and very technical course created by chief of course Andrew Hall was greatly enjoyed by the racers. The races had a mass start, and very quickly leading groups were formed. In the men’s, Boris Stanish, Jayden Spring and Clancy Merrick Harvey formed a pack at the front of the race, using each other for drafting and tactically aiming to get to the final podium in first position. Jayden and Boris eventually managed to edge away from Clancy and towards the final part of the race Jayden made a break for it and took himself into the finish to take first place. The women’s event went very similarly, with Maddie Hooker, Rosie Franzke and Olivia Schubert skiing clear and then Rosie and Maddie gaining a small break at the end of the first lap. On the third and final lap Maddie made a break for it and kept her gap for the rest of the race, leading to another victory. 5km, 2.5km, 1.5km, and 1km races were also held for athletes from younger age groups.

Maddie Hooker, winner of the women's 7.5km Freestyle

Sunday Freestyle Distance Results (full results on Alpine Timing)

This article was provided by This Week In Falls Creek and Mt Beauty XC reporter Ella Jackson.