Friendships and rivalries reignited as Interschools Championships returns

The Interschools Championships has made a thrilling return across three events over the past 10 days with nearly 2,200 athletes competing from News South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and ACT.

Following on from the triumphant return of the Subaru Northern NSW and QLD Interschools Championships earlier this month, the Subaru Sydney Championships (11-15 July) and Subaru ACT & Regional NSW Championships (18-22 July) in Perisher; and the South Australia & Regional NSW (20-21 July) Interschools Championships in Falls Creek were all held over the past two weeks.

Perisher was abuzz with excitement from athletes across NSW and ACT competing in several disciplines including Alpine, Ski Cross, Moguls, Snowboard GS and Snowboard Cross.

Sydney Championships Snowboard Giant Slalom Division 1 winner, James Johnstone from the Scots College, NSW, was excited to be back at Interschools after such a long time.

“This year was amazing,” the 17-year-old said. 

“Inteschools always reminds me of the strong connections that I have between all the competitors that I only see a few times a year and also the strong connections that I have with the boys from Scots who compete.”

The highlight of the week for the Scots Colleague 2022 Captain of Snowsports was during the presentation when the team gathered for a photo on the podium. 

During the team huddle, which finished with a hands-in with all the boys, they recited the classic chant: “What time is it?”, ”Showtime Scots!”

“Seeing all the Scots boys come together and seeing how happy they were with their performances and performance as a team was really special,” Johnstone explained.

“It was a real shame to miss out on the last two years but the energy that was brought by all of our team and all the competitors, in general, made it seem as though we never missed any racing.”

Following the Subaru Sydney Championships, students from 110 schools came together at Perisher for the Subaru ACT & Regional NSW event.

With a total of 1,970 entries across five disciplines, it was an exciting five-day competition for nearly 1,000 students.

Amalie Leslie from Hawker College, ACT, who competed across Alpine, Ski Cross and Moguls, had a mixed week on the snow but enjoyed being able to compete at an Interschools event again.

“The highlight of the week for me was a really good ski cross event where I was in my zone and able to perform to the best of my abilities,” she said.

“I was so happy to finally have interschools happening again after its two-year absence because of COVID-19.

“During the past two years I had been wishing that I could compete with a school team but I was still determined to do well by myself without the help of a school team since I had changed schools,” Leslie added. 

The 17-year-old was also thankful for the Snowy Mountains Grammar girls who had created a human tunnel for her to ski through after Leslie was the last to start practice but the first competitor.

“It was very sweet of them, especially after they had waited patiently for me.”

See all Interschools Championships results HERE.

The inaugural Interschools Junior Masters will be held at Thredbo next week, before the Victorian Interschools Cross Country Championships the following week.