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| In the family: Husband and wife WO2 Gavin Wickham and WO2 Alisa Wickham won placings at the ADF cross country. |
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| Girl power: Cpl Rebecca Christou, Maj Fiona King and WO2 Alisa Wickham. |
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Back on track: Sgt Simon O’Regan placed first overall in the ADF cross country. He recently returned to competitive running after a five-year break.
Photos by Cpl Kristen Pickering |
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THE muddy slopes of South Bandiana challenged more than 500 competitors in the ADF/ALTC cross country championships on May 24.
Defence members travelled from interstate to run the 7.1km course for the championship title. Army’s competitors proved too strong, taking out 13 of a possible 15 places in the event held at Gaza Ridge Barracks.
Sgt Simon O’Regan, who recently returned to running after a five-year absence, finished first overall and said it was difficult to judge what time he would run, but he was hoping to do well.
“I loved the course, I thought it was fantastic. Having recent rain on a course like this makes it a real cross-country, a bit muddy and wet,” he said.
“The PTIs did a great job at organising the event and setting up a great course.”
Sgt O’Regan took a break from competitive running to help raise his two children, now aged six and three, and returned to competition at the Arafura Games in Darwin last month, where he brought home two bronze medals for the 1500m and 3000m races.
“Now the kids are a bit older it makes it easier for me to train again. After returning from Iraq in November last year I decided to get back into it before I got too old,” he said.
“I still have a little way to go before I am where I want to be, but it is going well so far.”
He was first in the male open event and first overall male, running a time of 23.29.
Maj Fiona King scored a trifecta of wins – first ADF female veteran, first ALTC female and first overall female with a time of 28.21.
She hadn’t run the track before but was happy with her time, saying the running conditions were ideal.
“It has taken me 17 years to get my first cross-country title, so I am chuffed about it,” she said, as she advised others: “It’s never too late, so keep going at it.”
Maj King will represent ADF in Vanuatu in a relay event in July with nine other females, including WO2 Alisa Wickham.
WO2 Wickham said the cross-country had been ideal training for them both.
“The longest leg [in Vanuatu] is 16.9km and the shortest is 11.2km on arduous, undulating terrain,” she said.
WO2 Wickham was second in the ADF female veterans and second in the ALTC female category.
ADF CROSS COUNTRY RESULTS
Male Open: 1st Sgt Simon O’Regan 10FSB, 2nd Sgt Mathew Skate ALTC, 3rd LS Stuart Chellis HMAS Kuttable
Female Open: 1st Cpl Rebecca Christou SME, 2nd Cpl Jenni Greenland LBC, 3rd Capt Katrina Jones ALTC.
Male Veterans: 1st Sgt Craig Ambler ARTC, 2nd WO2 Gavin Wickham ALTC, 3rd WO2 Andrew Franklin 16AD Regt.
Female Veterans: 1st Maj Fiona King ALTC, 2nd WO2 Alisa Wickham ALTC, 3rd Maj Gail Thomas ALTC.
Male Masters: 1st WO2 Pat Thomas ALTC, 2nd Sgt Steve Linane 8/7 RVR, 3rd Leut Jeff Rayner HMAS Albatross. Related Story
ALTC tops at cross country |
