Course Record for de Rozario in Oz Day 10km Win

WAIS scholarship holder and London 2012 Paralympiac athlete Madison de Rozario has smashed the course record on her way to back-to-back OzDay10km crowns in what was a simply outstanding performance.

De Rozario, a dual Paralympian, posted a winning time of 24:41, eclipsing Switzerland’s Edith Hunkeler 2010 course record of 24.46.

NSW’s Christie Dawes (25:45) was more than a minute behind de Rozario in second, while Canadian Keira-Lyn Frei (26:11) pipped NSW’s Angela Ballard for third position on the podium.

For de Rozario, the race record came as a shock but was an achievement she said she was proud of considering it has previously been held by legends of women’s wheelchair racing, including her current mentor Louise Sauvage.

“Coming into the race, I knew I wanted the course record. But after the first 500 metres, I was on my own and knew it would be tough without anyone pushing me,” de Rozario said.

“But I concentrated on holding and maintaining my speed and I got into a good rhythm. And then when I made my final turn and looked at the race clock, I realised it was possible. It’s a great feeling.”

In the men’s race, Kurt Fearnley stormed to his ninth consecutive victory in the annual OzDay10km wheelchair race in Sydney today, but was made to fight all the way to keep his winning record intact.

With Canada’s Josh Cassidy and Japan’s Kota Hokinoue both taking the lead at different stages over the last kilometre, it took all of Fearnley’s trademark determination to repel the challengers.

It capped an amazing week for Fearnley, who delivered the official Australia Day Address on Tuesday.

“What a week. It’s such a great feeling to win this race and now I can’t wait to come back again next year and go for number 10,” Fearnley said.

“I placed a huge amount of importance into that speech on Tuesday. You only get an opportunity on a stage like that once and I really wanted to highlight the things that are important to me and the disability community.

“But once it was over, I put everything I had into winning this race and I’m going to enjoy celebrating it with my friends and family.”

Fearnley made the decisive move with 400 metres to race, and although Cassidy and Hokinoue stayed with him in the home straight, the defending champion crossed the line in 21 minutes and 42 seconds to triumph in front of his home crowd.

Cassidy just edged out Hokinoue for second although both men posted a time of 21:45.

“Kota and Josh really pushed me, but I just needed to focus on the things that I knew would win me the race,” Fearnley said.

“I surged up every hill to try and put the pressure on them, and I knew that if I was in front at the top of the last hill, I was going to be hard to beat. No one was going to take this away from me.”

– Australian Paralympic Committee