The preliminary 2017 Australian Race Calendar has recently been released by the SSA XC Committee. Click here to to download a copy.

The schedule of events includes the NSW Biathlon Sprints and Relays and the major XC championships and events which NSW Biathlon encourages all biathletes in NSW to enter where possible.  

In regards to the changes to the XC Calendar the SSA XC Committee advises their major dates are as follows:

• July 15/16 – State Championships at Falls Creek and Perisher
• July 22/23 – AUS Championships & FIS Races at Perisher
• July 29/30 – AUS Junior Championships at Falls Creek
• August 5-12 – NSW Cross Country Week at Perisher
• August 19/20 – AUS Championships & FIS Races at Falls Creek
• August 26 – Kangaroo Hoppet at Falls Creek

The main change is the moving of the Australian Championships at Perisher back into July. This has freed up the start of the NSW Cross Country Week from a championship event, which NSWXC have been requesting for several years because a clash with a long standing club event.

Concurrently a clash between an Australian Junior Team Selection race and the Victorian Interschools has also been removed. This shift was enabled by moving the Victorian Junior Championships into the last weekend of the Victorian School Holidays, which in turn was only made possible with the cooperation of Victorian club race organisers. While several compromises have had to be reached, SSA XC believes that the overall outcome has been worth the effort.

This timing of events is for 2017 only, and the 2018 calendar will be put together later this year following a review of the scheduling of races within the NSW Cross Country Week. It should be noted that SSA XC will continue to lobby to have the Victorian Interschools Cross Country event moved to a mid-week schedule, as is the case with the NSW and Australian Interschools events.

SSA XC would like to thank all race organisers for their assistance in putting this race schedule together.

(Courtesy of  SSA XC Committee, posted on February 17, 2017 by AUSXC)