ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY athletes descended on Galbraith Park, in Cannon Valley, for the third running of the North Queensland Cross-Country Championships, hosted by the Whitsunday Running Club.
While most events in the region had been cancelled because of the monsoon weather, the runners relished the opportunity to run on a very technical course reminiscent of traditional cross-country events in the UK and Europe – wet, muddy and slippery.
The event – held on Sunday, March 30, 2025 – showcased the runners’ talents for those aged between four and 75 years old over distances from 1km to 10kms.
Whitsunday Running Club members featured prominently in the senior races, with Billy Grogan finishing second behind Max McDonald, from Tully, in the 10km race.
Jeff Greenwood, from the club, came in third and Liv Compton won the ladies title ahead of her teammate Aimee Sulzberger, and Sarah Manttan from Mackay.
Six new records were set by:
· Roland Henderson from the Whitsunday Running Club in the 50-59 age category over 8kms
· Morgan Faulkner, from Alligator Creek, representing All Sports Speed and Endurance Training in the Women Under 20 over 6kms
· Charli Johnson from Shoal Point representing Asset Running in the Under 12 Girls over 3kms
· Julie Smith from Mission Beach in the Under 9/10 Girls over 1km
· Local Under 5/6 Boy Taj Coggan also in the 1km.
The fastest male 2km lap of the day was run by Toby Rule of ‘Rules of Running’ in the last leg of the 6km relay in a time of 6:24, just eclipsing Nicholas Dixon-Grover’s hot lap of 6:50 in his 6km race.
The fastest female 2km lap was run by local girl Shailee Mewha of ‘Rules of Running’ in 7:52 in her 3km race, just beating Cannon Valley runner Peppa Geisel’s 7:53 lap in the relay.
Overall winners of the other races were:
· Race Two (8km): Toby Rule
· Race Three (6km): Nicholas Dixon-Grover and Morgan Faulkner
· Race Four (4km): August Cole and Peppa Geisel
· Race Five (3km): Shailee Mewha and Charlie Mabb
· Race Six (2km): Kallen Lomman and Georgia Turner
· Race Seven (7km): Julie Smith and Theo Connell.
The oldest competitors, who were crowned North Queensland Champions in their age groups, were Whitsunday Running Club member Sylvie Thureau Martin (70+) and Michael Davidson from ‘On the Run’ (70+).
Event manager and president of the Whitsunday Running Club Tim McQuoid-Mason said, “The talent on show today was impressive with some very competitive races.
“There were many highlights but watching Toby Rule of the ‘Trail Troublemakers’ reeling in Morgan Faulkner of the ‘Banana Stars’ with 50 metres to go, in the last leg of the relay, was most probably the best one.”
The support from Athletics North Queensland, an affiliate of Queensland Athletics, ensured that the day went off without a hitch.
Their general manager Brad Taylor said, “it’s great to see how well long-distance running is developing in North Queensland and to watch them showing off their skills at this special venue.”
For more information and full results for the various age categories go to: www.runcrosscountry.com.au
