A beautiful sunny day greeted the crowd of over 1000 participants, volunteers, and spectators arriving at Falls Creek for the 31st Kangaroo Hoppet last Saturday, 23 August.
This unique event is held on Falls Creek’s network of groomed trails extending out into the Bogong High Plains of Australia’s Alpine National Park.
It is a great opportunity for everyone from beginners to Olympians to step onto their skis and have a go.
The Kangaroo Hoppet is a member of the prestigious Worldloppet series ski marathons, which attracts skiers from around the globe who come together to celebrate the joys of cross country skiing.
At this year’s Kangaroo Hoppet there were 24 different nations represented.
Notable participants included the CEO of Worldloppet who participated in the 42km Kangaroo Hoppet, which is the signature race in the event.
For those who don’t feel up to the challenge of the longer distance, there’s the 21km Australian Birkebeiner and 7km Joey Hoppet that allows everyone to be part of an international ski event in a safe and fun environment.
Australia’s brightest Olympic hopefuls delivered a golden day for the home crowd at Falls Creek, with Mount Beauty local Phillip Bellingham, and Rosie Fordham, taking out the respective men’s and women’s titles in the 42km event.
Phil went back-to-back for the weekend, and on Sunday competed in the Falls Creek SkiMo Challenge, Australia’s first ever Ski Mountaineering event.
SkiMo is set to make its Olympic debut in 2026, and Phil is on-track to represent Australia in this new event.
He has previously represented Australia at three Winter Olympic Games in cross country events.
Fordham relished the chance to race in front of Australia’s passionate skiing community.
Fresh from her National Championship success and a silver medal at the U23 World Championships earlier this year, the 21-year-old embraced her first Hoppet title with trademark energy.
“It’s like the whole Australian ski community is her," she said.
"I haven’t seen this many Australians out skiing – it’s so cool to be here with all of them.
"I wish I had come to the Hoppet as a kid, but I’ll definitely be back.”
In the 21km Australian Birkebeiner the men’s and women’s winners were Noah Bradford and Rosie Franzke, another Mount Beauty local.
In the 7km Joey Hoppet the male and female winners were Alberto Allen and Ivy Potocki.
While the winners get the glory, the main heart of the event is the community of cross country skiers who come together to challenge themselves, have fun, and share experiences.
Congratulations to everyone involved for another successful Kangaroo Hoppet.
The Kangaroo Hoppet is the largest snow sports event in the southern hemisphere, and it could not be run without the generous support of major sponsors: AGL, Falls Creek Alpine Resort, and the Mount Beauty & District Community Bank.
RACE RESULTS:
42KM KANGAROO HOPPET (Female): 1 FORDHAM Rosie, AUS 1:40:41; 2 HOOKER Maddie, AUS 1:51:09; 3 PAUL Katerina, AUS 1:55:21.
42KM KANGAROO HOPPET (Male): 1 BELLINGHAM Phillip, AUS 1:32:55; 2 DE CAMPO Seve, AUS 1:33:04; 3 WALKER-BROOSE Bentley, AUS 1:37:31.
21KM Australian Birkebeiner (Female): 1 FRANZKE Rosie, AUS 1:01:43; 2 GRAY Hannah, AUS 1:07:31; 3 GREEN Mia, AUS 1:09:33.
21KM Australian Birkebeiner (Male): 1 BRADFORD Noah, AUS 0:54:12; 2 JOHNSON Samuel, AUS 0:55:16; 3 SPRING Jayden, AUS 0:55:35.
7KM Joey Hoppet (Female): 1 POTOCKI Ivy, AUS 0:18:37; 2 CULLEN-CROKE Carmen, AUS 0:19:34; 3 FRANZKE Bethany, AUS 0:19:47.
7KM Joey Hoppet (Male): 1 ALLAN Alberto, AUS 0:16:07; 2 CULLEN-CROKE Liam, AUS 0:16:22; 3 BRADFORD Tyler, AUS 0:16:26.