ANOTHER WIN TO PIRIE: FOREST RUN
Athletics CorrespondentD. A. G. Pirie with another world-class time of 1h 40m, triumphed again in the seventh and final trial for the New Zealand representative orienteering team, held over an eight mile course yesterday in the south Woodhill State forest.
By far the toughest course of the trial series, the event was of elite standard, and the overall performances of the competitors indicated that New Zealand has a very strong chance of winning the forth-coming Rothmans international Australasian championship in November.
C. Battley was second in lh 59m 34s, with D. Townsend, R. M. Doherty and P. Cunningham also mastering difficult terrain and tricky control approaches with first class orienteering.
Townsend won third place in 2h 20m 35s, and Doherty, with a performance the equal of his overall performances which gave turn the best average during the Australian tour last year, was fourth, lm 32s ahead of Cunningham.
The New Zealand team will be announced at a function tomorrow evenings at which the triple Olympic champion P. G. Snell will present representative badges to the team, on behalf of the sponsors and the New Zealand Orienteering Association.
Thirty five novices and intermediates contested the minor events.
Seventh N.Z. selection trial:
D.A.G. Pirie, 1h 40m 0s, 1; C. Battley, 1h 59m 34s, 2; D. Townsend, 2h 20m 35s 3;
R. M. Doherty, 2h 24m 4s, 4; P. Cunningham, 2h 25m 36s, 5;
A. Nicholls, 2h 32m 55s, 6; R. Jenner, 3h 16m 38s, 7.
Points: Pirie 60; Battley, 57; Townsend, 54; Cunningham, 50.5; Doherty 50;
R. King, 44.5; R. Jenner, 43; A. Nicholls, 43.
Intermediate men: N. Lewis, 2h 2m 21s, 1; R. Voyce, I. Smith, 2h 3m 9s, equal, 2.
Intermediate combined: B. Vercoe and J. Taberner, 2h 3m 9s, 1.
Senior women: A. Garrett 2h 14m 42s, 1.
Novice: M. Vercoe, P. Vercoe, P. Harris, 1h 11m 21s, 1; R. Saimon, C. Mann, 1h 38m 11s, 2;
S. Pirie, F. Hannay, D. Kershaw, 2h 2m 32s, 3.
Men: R. McGregor, 1h 47m 25s, 1; M. and I. Fife, 2h 0m 35s, 2.