Orienteering Queensland Life Member & Queensland Outdoor Recreation Award winner Eric Andrews passed away on May 19, 2016 at St Vincent’s Hospital in Toowoomba.

On behalf of QORF and all our members, we offer his wide, Liz  Bourne and their family our sincerest condolences for their loss and acknowledge the huge influence Eric had on orienteering, rogaining and outdoor recreation.

Eric had been involved with the sport of orienteering for more than 30 years, as a competitor, administrator, selector, technical director, event organiser and mapper, and few other Australian orienteers have made a greater contribution to the sport in so many different areas. His efforts were recognised by being made a Life Member of the Queensland Orienteering Association in 2001 and being awarded Orienteering Australia’s Silva Award for services to orienteering in 1992. He gained the Stanthorpe Shire Council’s Australia Day Award for Sports Administration in 2001 and in 2006 he won the Queensland Outdoor Recreation Federation’s Outstanding Achievement (Individual) award for his services to the sports of orienteering, rogaining and mountain bike orienteering.

Apart from his many other contributions to orienteering, Eric also played a major role in event management over the last 26 years. As well as organising hundreds of local and state events, he has also made a significant contribution to the conduct of many major national events. He was the principal organiser of the 1982 Military Orienteering Championships in Queensland in 1982, an organiser of the Family Relays at the Australian 3 Days at Cherrabah in 1987 and technical co-ordinator for the 1991 Top State Carnival which involved six events, including the Queensland and Australian Championships. Eric was also the technical director and course setter for the 1995 Australian 3 Days Orienteering Championships at Crows Nest.

He undertook the role of event co-ordinator and technical director of the Asia-Pacific Orienteering Championships Carnival in July 2000 which covered a total of nine events, including the Australian and Asia-Pacific Championships.

In 2004, he was event co-ordinator for the Australian 3 Days Orienteering Championships held at Ipswich which was part of an extended carnival that also involved the Australian MTBO Championships, the Australian Middle Distance Championships and the Southern Downs Championships.

More recently, he undertook more than four years work to co-ordinate the Australian Orienteering Championships Carnival which was held at Maryborough in September/October.  This major event involved 15 separate events over a 12 day period including all disciplines of the Australian Championships – sprint, middle, long and relay – as well as the sprint, middle and long distance events for the Australian Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships. Two of the foot events and two of the MTBO events were also designated IOF World Ranking Events. This event was a finalist in the Queensland Outdoor Recreation Federation’s 2009 Outdoor Event Award .

Eric’s voluntary work over decades as an event organiser was characterised by a high standard of professionalism and an ability to bring together a large number of volunteers from many clubs to work effectively as a team. His skills in strategic planning, leadership, knowledge of, and attention to technical details proved invaluable in delivering major carnivals of a very high standard that have been well received by the orienteering community.

His abilities to liaise effectively with land owners and managers, government agencies, sponsors and a range of community groups also contributed to the success of our major carnivals. He sought to share his knowledge with other orienteers and encourage their professional development by conducting regular event organiser’s workshops.

Citation courtesy of Orienteering Queensland