At the Garingal's 2020 Christmas Party - held this afternoon at Manly Dam - the Perpetual Trophy for the 'Most Improved Junior in 2020' was awarded to Riley Grainger. The Junior Encouragement Award Medal goes to Kieran Joseph. The Silver Hare perpetual trophy was awarded to Warwick Selby for running our events calendar for several years now (over a dozen non-SSS events per year that he finds the Course Planner, often also an Organiser, and a Controller - no mean feat). The Silver Hare was donated nearly four decades ago by Garingal member Moira Whiteside who believed that the people behind the scenes contributing to the organisation of events should be recognised too. The list of awardees on the base of the Silver Hare is a veritable who's who of Garingalites. Photos L to R: Riley Grainger, Kieran Joseph, Warwick Selby (all courtesy of Tony Hill).
The awarding of the overall Garingal Champion for 2020 has been held over until after the results of the 2020 NSW Middle and Long Championships being held at Eugowra the week after Easter are known. This way the profile of Garingal events that count toward the Club Championships will better represent the typical nature of orienteering across a year (distorted of course by the coronavirus situation).
Garingal life member and Sydney Summer Series founder/organiser Ross Barr is the ONSW Volunteer of the Year for 2020.
This is a fitting award as Ross celebrates the 30th year of the SSS, arguably the greatest local innovation in orienteering.
He has led the series since its conception as visionary, chief organiser and mentor (to course setters, organisers, competitors), not to mention feature reporter (in the weekly SSS blog where his exceptional prose and knowledge of the fine arts shine through).
Ross has also been a mapper and course setter for Garingal for many years, including for national events. He also writes periodically for The Australian Orienteer magazine on various topics.
This award makes it a neat handful of major ONSW awards: he received the President’s Award in 1996 and the Encouragement Award in 2006, and was twice named Course Setter of the Year (2015 and 2011). At a national level he was awarded the David Hogg Medal for Services to Orienteering in 2013.
Ross has also been recognised outside of orienteering, being named the Sport NSW Community Sport Administrator in 2016. He is a volunteer extraordinaire.
ONSW President's Award goes to Carol Jacobson
Garingal "Jill-of-all-trades" Carol Jacobson is a thoroughly deserved winner of the NSW President's Award for 2020.
Carol's professional academic career in cartography makes her a natural to be Garingal's main mapping officer. Add in writing event organiser manuals, compiling the club's roster of helpers, making new maps, looking after SI from time to time, and setting summer series courses - and you've got a much loved member who gives everything to the sport.
Carol is also a Level 2 Controller and often takes on club members who are novice planners to nurture them so that they learn and enjoy the experience.
She first joined the Garingal committee in January 2000 and has served in various important roles ever since - a period of 20 years – including president, vice-president and events organiser.
A simply monumental contribution to orienteering.
Congratulations Carol.
ONSW Rookie's Award goes to Cooper Horley
Garingal tyro Cooper Horley has added the 2020 NSW Rookie of the Year award to his rapidly expanding orienteering resume.
In 2019 he was a member of the triumphant NSW schools team that won the national title for the first time in 17 years.
And Cooper last year won the individual medal in Division 2 of the Sydney Metro League, running Hard courses despite being only in Year 8 and his second year in the sport.
This summer he has been regularly finishing in the top 10 scorers each week in the Sydney Summer Series, showing some serious speed and skill.
Congratulations Cooper!
