127th NSW Cross Country Championships – Hince and Oates claim titles

22 June 2025

127th NSW Cross Country Championships – Hince and Oates claim titles

The 127th edition of the NSW Athletics Cross Country Championships were held in glorious winter conditions over the rugged Willandra course on the NSW South Coast yesterday.

UTS Norths athlete Bronte Oates clocked a stunning record-breaking winning time, while in the men’s, Luke Hince added to his family’s history at the event, three decades after his mother won the race.

MEN Open 10km

“Today’s win was very special to me, I’ve been running Nowra since 2011 as a young junior so to finally take the open title was very surreal.” They were the words of the men’s winner Luke Hince (KEJ), certainly inspired by the iconic Willandra cross country venue, an institution for distance runners in NSW. Additionally, his mother Lorraine Davis, won the women’s title over these same hills 30-years ago in 1995.

Luke certainly didn’t have it all his own way despite defending champion and four-time winner Ed Goddard not making it to the start line. Luke had twice placed runner up (in 2022 and 2024), but in 2025 he faced strong competition from 2:11.51 marathoner Tom do Canto (Run Crew).

Luke Hince reflected on how the race was run.

“The race itself started off slow and tactical until Tom and I decided to break free and work the hills. I kept getting little breaks on him and then he would close the gap. Negotiating the final hill was when I finally snapped the elastic band and was confident, I had the win – so he made me work right to the end.”

At the finish just six seconds would be the margin, with Luke crossing the line in 32:00 minutes from Tom with 32:06.

There was a close battle for the bronze medal with Hamish Longworth (BAN) clinching the medal in 32:44, from Sydney Uni’s Ben Bishop (32:48) and UNSW’s Logan Campbell (32:55).

It was just the second win for Kembla Joggers in the event, following Ryan Gregson’s 2010 victory aged 20. For Luke the current NSW 5000m track champion, it was his second winter championships title, following his 2023 Short Course XC win in 2023.

WOMEN Open 10km

The open women’s race was in total contrast to the men’s close battle. Training partners Bronte Oates (UTN) and Danette Sheehan (Run Crew) broke away from the field early. Bronte then put a large gap between her and Danette and it was no surprise when you analysis her run. Bronte won in 35:39 seconds – 39 seconds faster than any woman has run on the course since the race was first run over 10km in 2016. The previous best time was Paige Campbell’s with 36:18.

Danette Sheehan also produced a great run, clocking 37:12 - 49 seconds faster than her silver medal winning effort last year. In third was current NSW track 10,000m champion Leyla Liakatos (BAN) with a time of 39:00 minutes.

Coached by Run Crew’s Katie Lawrence, Bronte Oates, 20, has over the last six months produced a number of excellent performances including 7th at Zatopek and winning the 10km at the Melbourne Marathon.

It was the fourth win by UTS Norths in the event following Eliza Stewart (2007 & 2010) and Kate Spencer last year.

MEN Para Open 3km

The same three competitors from last years event faced the starters gun this year, but it would be a different result. Last year, in the wet conditions, North Coast’s Kyle McIntosh won in 9:43 minutes, just ahead of Orange’s Aaron Houston (9:48) with Jack Conroy third in 11:50.

In the improved 2025 running conditions, Kyle led early and mid-race held a comfortable lead. But Aaron ran home stronger to take the title narrowly by just two second in 9:47 ahead of Kyle’s 9:49. Jack Conroy improved 25 seconds on last year to clock 9:25 for the bronze medal.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW
Image: Luke Hince leads the men’s 10km field (image courtesy of David Tarbotton)