11 Apr 2009

NZ title after six months off

12:15 pm on 11 April 2009

A Taranaki dairy farmer has taken the national sprint title at the New Zealand Orienteering Championships in Auckland.

Karl Dravitzki's achievement was remarkable considering it was his first serious orienteering event in six months.

The 30-year-old went into the full-bore 3.3-kilometre dash around a tricky course through the Epsom College of Education campus, insisting that he really had no idea how well he'd go.

But his 13-minute nine-second sprint saw him secure his third national title - finishing 15 seconds faster than 18-year-old Aucklander Jourdan Harvey.

Wellington university student Lizzie Ingham continued her dominant form to take the elite women's title.