9 July 2025
At 6.30am, the June air was quite frosty at the starting line high up in the Queensland hinterland, but the single-digit temperatures weren’t enough to dissuade more than 50 teams from participating in the annual 7km or 10km Canungra Combat Challenge (C3) at Kokoda Barracks.
Raising money for Legacy, the event comprised an initial 600-metre run to a stores location, with collection of four stores (22kg sand bag, 16kg pole, sand-filled ammunition liner and full water jerry) for a 3km carry over hills to the Australian Army Training Team Vietnam memorial and drop-off.
Physical challenges along the way included an 800m tyre push, tyre flips, a log carry, 80kg casualty stretcher carry, fire and movement/leopard crawl, and completion of the Kokoda Barracks obstacle course, before a frigid swim across the Coomera river.
Operations Officer at Land Warfare College (LWC) Major Joe Kelly, Officer-in-Charge of this year’s C3, said historically there were four types of teams who competed in the challenge.
“Teams who have been cobbled together and are venturing into the unknown; teams with juniors/minors mentored by C3 veterans; teams who are physical weapons, competing for the win; and teams who used to be weapons and are trying to figure out what their body can still do,” Major Kelly said.
'Legacy is a great organisation, and the Canungra Combat Challenge is such a good opportunity for us here at LWC and Kokoda Barracks to invite members of our Canungra community into our backyard.'
More than 200 participants tackled this year’s challenge, with the college contributing not only a complete ADF team, but also providing additional soldiers to bolster any civilian teams lacking numbers.
The event also included a team from the Australian Army Band – Brisbane, who helped keep competitors going with some big brass motivation.
The winning 10km time was an impressive 1hr 31min, and the event raised more than $110,000 for Legacy.
Despite varying ages and abilities, all teams succeeded in completing their courses.
Commanding Officer LWC Lieutenant Colonel John Leathley said he was proud of his team’s support of this year’s challenge.
“Legacy is a great organisation, and the Canungra Combat Challenge is such a good opportunity for us here at LWC and Kokoda Barracks to invite members of our Canungra community into our backyard to share a challenging experience in support of such great cause,” Lieutenant Colonel Leathley said.
