20 years strong as Kokoda Challenge returns to Gold Coast
The Kokoda Challenge turns this month with 810 teams and a WWII flyover set to inspire thousands across GC.
What’s happening?
The Kokoda Challenge returns to the Gold Coast from 19–20 July 2025, marking its 20th year of testing endurance, mateship and resilience. Known as Australia's toughest team endurance event, it winds through the Gold Coast Hinterland across three distances: 30km, 48km and 96km.
This year, over 810 teams are taking part, each fuelled by a personal reason for stepping up to the challenge.
Why it matters
More than just a race, the Kokoda Challenge supports the Kokoda Youth Foundation’s work with disengaged young Australians. Through fundraising, participants help fund youth programs that change lives.
As Meila, a 96km participant and Kokoda Youth Program graduate, shared:
“The program changed our lives; we've grown to be better people and learned our limits and goals. So, this year we are ready and ecstatic to get back into training and the challenge.”
Local Impact
Hundreds of teams from across Queensland are joining, including more than 470 school teams. Their involvement helps instil values of teamwork, commitment and resilience in young Australians. Amelia, who is tackling the 30km event despite a medical condition causing partial paralysis, said:
“I'm doing the Kokoda Challenge with my best friends to overcome personal and mental challenges.”
By the numbers:
Over 810 teams will participate in the 2025 event across 30km, 48km and 96km distances.
470+ school teams are joining from across the state, reflecting strong youth engagement.
The event marks 20 years since the first Kokoda Challenge was held on the Gold Coast in 2005.
Zoom In
This year includes a special tribute to the Kokoda legacy. A WWII-era P-51 Mustang fighter plane flyover will launch the 96km event from Mudgeeraba at 7:00 AM on 19 July. One participant has also won a rare chance to nominate a supporter or hero to ride as a passenger during the flyover.
Radio station Triple M Gold Coast is also getting involved, fielding two teams led by breakfast host Peter “Spida” Everitt.
Zoom Out
The Kokoda Challenge is more than a race. It’s a community event that blends fitness with purpose, inspiring participants to push through limits for a greater cause. Each team’s fundraising supports life-changing youth programs across the country.
What to look for next?
With growing attention on this year’s milestone event, keep an eye on the stories that emerge post-event. From the impact on youth to personal victories on the trail, the 2025 Kokoda Challenge is set to leave a lasting mark.
Event Details:
96km Event: 7:00 AM start at 39A Somerset Drive, Mudgeeraba
48km Event: 10:00 AM (School), 12:00 PM (Open) start at Raw Challenge, 2201 Nerang Murwillumbah Rd, Numinbah Valley
30km Event: 2:00 PM start at 8 Hope Street, Nerang Velodrome