KOKODA CHALLENGE
SUNSHINE COAST

Since 2021, the Kokoda Challenge charity events on the Sunshine Coast has seen thousands of teams gather to pay their respects to our fallen Australian Defence Force members and raise funds for the Kokoda Youth Foundation's life-changing youth programs.

Held on Gubbi Gubbi Country, the Sunshine Coast Kokoda Challenge kicks off at the quaint country town of Kenilworth where teams set off into the Imbil State Forest to climb rugged mountains and wade through rivers. Not far from this very forest, in the Blackall Ranges, is where many of our Diggers were trained in jungle warfare before being deployed overseas to fight for our country, many of them never returning.

Whether it's the 18km, 30km, or 48km distance your team chooses to tackle, you'll need the four pillars of the Kokoda Spirit to get you all to the finish line: courage, endurance, mateship, and sacrifice. These are the values that our Kokoda Veterans displayed while defending our country along the Kokoda Track in 1942 and are the values that you'll need to push yourself and your teammates to keep going on your adventure despite the hills, the heat, and the hardship that you'll face while on the Kokoda Challenge course.

Whether you're a hiker or a trail runner, this Sunshine Coast hiking event might be one of the most difficult physical and mental feats you'll ever face. But the feeling of crossing the finish line after pushing yourself far beyond your perceived limits is indescribable. Every step is worth it, knowing that your journey is also supporting local kids in our community and honouring our Aussie heroes.

The men who fought along the real Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea during 1942 not only had to battle torrential rain, relentless humidity, poor sanitary and medical supplies and therefore malaria, dysentery and other illnesses, they also faced an enemy that posed a threat to Australia and our allies. These men fought in adverse conditions yet still prevailed. The purpose of the Kokoda Challenge hiking event on the Sunshine Coast is to provide you with a deeper understanding of what these men endured in order to protect our great country.

This is also an opportunity for you to participate in a Sunshine Coast charity event and give back to your community, as the funds you raise will go directly towards helping youth in the local area. The Kokoda Youth Foundation offers a variety of programs, all which are offered free of charge thanks to your fundraising. The objectives of the programs range keeping disengaged high school students out of the juvenille justice system to mentoring opportunities that guide teens through a journey of learning resilience and structure by instilling in them the values of the Kokoda Spirit.

The Kokoda Challenge promises to transform you in a way that you’ve never experienced before; you’ll form unbreakable bonds with your team, you will reflect deeply on the sacrifices made by past generations for us to enjoy the freedom we know today and you will walk alongside the kids who you are fundraising for who are also completing the challenge.