Victorians on the World Stage, June to August – JWOC and WOC Report

Congratulations to Victorian members of the Australian teams selected to compete at World Championships in 2026!

• Junior World Orienteering Championships, Sweden, June 29-July 7 – Milla Key. Team leaders Warren and Aston Key – follow here
• World Orienteering Championships, Italy, July 6-11 – Milla Key, Aston Key. Team leaders Mary Fleming, Natasha Key – follow here
• World and Junior World MTBO Championships, Sweden, August 24-30 – Maya Bennette – follow here

JWOC Results

2026 proved to be Australia’s most successful JWOC, with two Silver medals, and some really impressive Relay results in both Sprint and Forest races. Milla’s JWOC campaign was mixed, but she really shone in both Relays.  The week began with a bang when Cooper Horley and Elye Dent tied for second in the Sprint – a remarkable result, backed up by another 2 top-20 finishes.  On a high, the Australia 1 team, with Milla leading off, claimed 5th place in the Sprint Relay, making the European teams really sit up and take notice.  The action moved to the forest, and Milla was the best place Australian woman with 59th in the Long Distance.  But she saved the best till last, with a sizzling 5th place in the Forest Relay, setting the Aussie Womens team up for a fantastic 7th place!  An incredible week for the team in Sweden, with only a few days before moving to Genoa, Italy, for the World Champs.

Read more and see photos on Orienteering Australia’s facebook page.

WOC Results

An incredible start to the World Orienteering Champs in Genoa, Italy, with all three men qualifying for the Individual Sprint Final, each finishing in the top 10 in their respective heats.  Aston Key joined Henry McNulty and Cooper Horley, in a highly technical Final race, where every leg had an interesting route choice.  Henry took the early lead and remained in the leader’s Hot Seat for quite some time. Aston bested him right up until the second last control, where he lost a bit of time and finished 10 seconds behind. With a reverse chasing start there were plenty of strong runners to come, but both had done enough to earn top 10 finishes – Henry 7th and Aston 9th.  A very welcome return to international competition for Aston!