8 minute read

IF YOU LIKE IT THEN YOU SHOULDA PUT AN RING ON IT Olym pi c

SIMON HARRIS

(You sung that, didn’t you?)

WITH AN ESTIMATED 20 MILLION PARTICIPANTS SINCE 2010, TRAIL RUNNING HAS BECOME ONE OF THE WORLD’S FASTEST GROWING SPORTS (ACCORDING TO INTERNATIONAL TRACK AND FIELD FEDERATION). WITH THE BASIC REQUIREMENTS ONLY BEING A PAIR OF SHOES AND HAVING THE GREAT OUTDOORS SOMEWHERE CLOSE BY, THERE ARE NOW MORE THAN 25,000 RACES ACROSS 195 COUNTRIES WITH NEARLY 2 MILLION REGISTERED COMPETITORS.

SO WITH THE NUMBERS SO LARGE, ISN’T IT TIME WE GET THE SPORT RECOGNISED AT AN OLYMPIC LEVEL? KATE DZIENIS DELVES INTO THE POTENTIAL OF INTRODUCING TRAIL RUNNING TO THE OLYMPICS AND THE PARALYMPICS, AND DISCOVERS A PUSH HAS JUST STARTED, HARD AND FAST, TO GET THE SPORT INTO THE 2032 BRISBANE GAMES.

WORDS: KATE DZIENIS

IMAGES: JOEP BUIJS, DOMINIC CHAPLIN, ELEMENT PHOTOGRAPHY, DOMINIC MURPHY

On April 10, way back when in 1896, a group of 17 male runners gathered at the start line of the first modern Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece to run 24.8mi, or 39.9km, to the Panathenaic Stadium.

After doing a bit of research, I had to chuckle to myself when I’d learnt that 3rd Place finisher Spyridon Belokas was disqualified for ‘hitching a ride in a carriage along part of the race course’, and the winner – a Greek man by the name of Spyridon Louis – became a national hero, only to return to farm life and never race again.

I guess Louis ticked that off his bucket list and was happy to leave it at that.

It wasn’t until more than 100 years later that women were granted an addition to the marathon program, at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, with gold medal winner Joan Benoit clocking in an amazing time of 2:24:52 and inspiring women everywhere to follow her lead.

Cross country running made its appearance (for men only) in the 1912, 1920 and 1924 Games, but was quickly cancelled off the program. In 2020 there was a push by World Athletics to re-introduce it at the 2024 Games in Paris, with suggestions of a 5km event that would see two men and two women per nation compete in a mixedgender race – but it was rejected. There was also news doing the rounds in 2017 that ultra running (regardless if it was meant to be track, road or trail) was successfully campaigned for and due to appear at the 2024 Games, but looking at the preliminary schedule of events dated April 2023, sadly I don’t see it listed.

It’s now 2023, and trail running has, as you’re all well aware, blitzed itself on the athletic scene and is continuously gaining faster momentum than Japan’s bullet trains. From my point of view, there are a barrage of reasons why the sport deserves Olympic status, and local organising committees have incredible opportunities here to help make it happen.

But it all starts with International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognition, where criteria needs to be met; and of course, campaigning hard and fast to officials can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars so there’s a bit of a downside to that one. One of the best things to do, though, is to introduce trail running to officials in the year a country hosts the Games – and in our case, it’s Brisbane 2032.

Trails have to be spectator-friendly and dynamic too, but let’s face it – Australia and New Zealand have some of the most beautiful locations in the world for potential courses, so I don’t think there’s much issue there. Some accessibility problems in remote areas, sure. But for start and finish lines, aid stations, and random hot spots, crowd access would be well organised with the right people involved. This is where we could use it all to our advantage and form a highly experienced collective of race directors, organisers and high-profile runners to come up with ideal point-to-point options that would showcase not only the athleticism of our Aussie and Kiwi trail runners, but the beauty of this part of the world.

Opportunities are endless when it comes to utilising technology in media coverage too, so I won’t go on about that because I have a million and one ideas, but one thing’s for sure – trail running is the perfect Olympic sport to encourage and entice younger generations to participate due to its accessibility and (initial) low cost, all through television and live social media recordings.

In mid-2022, the Trail Running Association of Queensland (TRAQ) started the Trail Running 2032 Campaign (TR2032), a 10year plan and initiative to see trail running accepted as an Olympic sport at the Brisbane Games – both Olympic and Paralympic –created as a joint project with other trail running associations and organisations across Australia.

In March 2023, TRAQ hosted the CheckPoint One trail running community summit hosted at The Precinct in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane to officially launch the campaign.

TRAQ president Mike Duggan says providing opportunities for people of all abilities to be involved in safe and sustainable trail running activities is key to the long term success of the sport, and the campaign’s official launch earlier this year was a big accomplishment.

“Over 100 people representing the trail running community attended in-person and virtually,” he says.

“A month before, we launched the first Australian Trail Running Survey to find out what the community thought was important about trail running in Australia and the potential of the sport in the Olympics. We had over 500 responses from clubs, groups, associations and individuals across the country.

“The survey responses formed the basis for what was discussed at CheckPoint One, which included improving access to trails for training and events, promoting and advocacy for protecting the natural environmental and cultural value of Australia’s wild places and bushland, and providing minimum standards for events to ensure safety and professionalism.”

The campaign is being designed to ensure that trail running is able to accomplish so much more than just being an Olympic and Paralympic sport though, according to Mike.

“The global Games are arguably the pinnacle for a competitive sport, but can act as a catalyst for global impact and change well beyond the competitive environment of the event,” he explains.

“We see that trail running’s long journey over the coming almost-10 years to become an Olympic and Paralympic sport could change the way people interact with the environment and develop pathways for more adaptive athletes and women to access trails in a safe and supportive way.

“We want to expand the sport’s power to connect communities globally and change lives, which is what the Olympic and Paralympic dream is all about in the end.”

Earlier this year, a TRAQ working group was formed to support the campaign, and in the future, TR2032 is expected to be an independent venture. A key ‘checkpoint’ in the campaign is to support the formation of a national trail running body which will provide representation to the peak body for athletics in Australia and globally, according to Mike.

“At this stage, we have national representatives for the International Trail

Running Association (ITRA) and other associations that, at times, represent trail running such as the Australian Ultra Runners Association (AURA) and the Australian Mountain Running Association (AMRA).

“For trail running to be considered as a sport worthy of the Games, it’s clear we need high level representation in Australia; achieving this aim in the coming 12 months is important to steer this objective across the finish line.”

Qld trail runner and coach Ben Duffus has a wealth of experience in the sport and comes with a strong background in podium finishes, including securing 1st placings at the 2021 Six Foot Track 45km, 2020 Brisbane Trail Ultra 60km, 2019 Australian Mountain Running Championships, the 2019 Guzzler 50km, the 2019 UTA22 and the 2019 Blackall 50km.

He grew up aspiring to one day make the Olympics in several different sports, and has even been lucky enough to watch various athletes he used to train or race with win Olympic medals. He says he would love to one day fulfill that Olympic dream with trail running.

“I will turn 40 in 2032, so I think it’s absolutely plausible that I could still be in contention for qualifying, though it may largely depend on the format that’s implemented,” he explains.

“Trail running being introduced to the Olympics would be a significant step forward for the professionalism and exposure of the sport. For elites, this could mean more opportunities for support and recognition; as an Olympic sport, there is potential for far more federation and government support as well as increasing the marketability of trail runners for sponsors.

“At a grass roots level, it could open up more development pathways for young and up-and-coming athletes, as well as simply providing inspiration for the masses and promoting the sport to a far wider community.

“It could bring more money into the sport too, and this can be invested in growing and developing trail running for everyone. If it also means a potential avenue for athletes to make a decent living, then that would help retain the most talented athletes (who might also have a strong potential in other endurance events).

“We’re at an important stage in the process right now where the sport needs to decide what event formats will enter the Olympics, and from there we can work to determine potential development pathways for young athletes.”

Brisbane Trail Ultra managing director and race director Shona Stephenson designed the BTU’s course back in 2018 with long term views and goals in mind, one of them being a finish line that was in close proximity to the city so all demographics could enjoy the fun of trail running –whether it was for running, crewing, volunteering or simply spectating.

She says Brisbane is the perfect stand-out location for the introduction of trail running into the Olympics and Paralympics.

“The first question people ask me when I tell them about trail running is, ‘Is it an Olympic sport?’” she reveals.

“The Olympic brand provides validation to a sport, and we knew that if we finished our event in the city, close to an Olympic venue, we could sell it to Queensland and Brisbane Tourism officials as an event worth supporting. The goal was to then attract maximum media attention while showcasing Brisbane as a destination city for trail running, plus finish a trail running event in the Gabba – less than 1km from our course.

“We also wanted to prove to local and state governments that trail running could host a world event; the fastest runners can knock off a trail marathon in under 3 hours, which still makes for excellent television coverage. A half marathon finishing on Mt Cootha would also be an epic showcase of our amazing trails and the proximity to a capital city.”

Putting the sport into the hands of Olympic and Paralympic officials still requires support from athletes and the wider trail running community though, not just government and tourism bodies, and according to Shona it’s important runners stand together and support the movement.

“The Olympics are a golden once-in-alifetime opportunity for trail running athletes in Australia to make the most of the ‘home’ advantage and make a name for themselves,” she says.

“I predict there will be endless sponsorship potentials and life-changing opportunities available if someone makes it onto the Olympic Trail Running Team…not only that, but the future of trail running will explode. Kids will really think about becoming a trail runner like they think of becoming a professional triathlete or surfer, snowboarder or mountain bike rider.

“The media attention I believe will activate the community into supporting trail running and the lead-up Olympic events, and will also hopefully showcase the athletes’ skills as something that is truly remarkable.

“I also hope that athletes will receive more sponsorship and support as the growth of the sport compounds and is able to provide for its community as well as foster the next generation of trail runners.”

TO GET INVOLVED IN THE TR2032 CAMPAIGN WORKING GROUP: