ESK Valley orienteer Hannah Goddard has been selected to represent Australia at the 2015 Junior World Orienteering Championships.
The 17-year-old Goddard, along with Hobart orienteers Anna Dowling, 18, and Jarrah Day, 17, was selected for Australia following races in South Australia at Easter.
The close racing meant that it was a nervous wait for the team announcement.
Goddard, who represented Australia in January in a test match against New Zealand, was delighted with her selection, as this takes her to the world stage.
She said it was a great honour to be selected and she was looking forward to the challenge that Norway's terrain would pose.
Goddard's selection demonstrates her all-round ability as an athlete, as she has been a competitive player in netball, playing state league for Cavaliers' under-19 team last year, and this year she was a member of the Scotch Oakburn first eight rowing team.
Dowling represented Australia in Bulgaria last year and will be looking to improve on her results from last year.
Day, like Goddard, has been selected for the first time.
The championships will be held from July 4 to 10 in Rauland, Norway.
Another Esk Valley orienteer, Ashley Nankervis, was named as a reserve for the team.
Team members have a heavy schedule of training leading up to Norway, starting with a training camp in Tasmania next week and National League races in Canberra in May, followed by training and competition in New Zealand in June.
Rookies make up half the Australian team for the junior worlds, with Goddard and Day joining Queenslanders Winnie Oakhill and Simeon Burrill, Victoria's Patrick Jaffe and NSW's Aidan Dawson as the new faces in the 12-strong squad.
The team coach is Tasmanian Hanny Allston, a world champion and junior world champion in 2006.
In Norway the team will compete in four disciplines - sprint: 3-kilometre in urban environments, middle: 3.5-4km in forests, long 7-10km in forests, and relay: teams of three running 5-6km each.
The event website is www.jwoc 2015.org.
