Fieldwork forms a substantial part of the International Geography Olympiad (IGEO) both in terms of time and in the nature of the experience in which participants get a chance to explore the "real world" of the host country. Fieldwork offers young geographers an excellent opportunity to explore the regional and local geography of the host nation thereby stimulating interest and developing skills in the context of unfamiliar environments. There is widespread recognition that fieldwork is essential to geography education. Arguably its inclusion in IGEO is legitimate but assumptions about the value of and approach to fieldwork in IGEO have been poorly evaluated and lack critical appraisal. To illustrate this concern, this paper describes two different approaches to fieldwork that were adopted in South Africa in 2002 and Australia in 2006. Both accounts show that fieldwork was more than just about raising awareness or casually exploring a local environment of the host nations. The difference lies largely in the expectations of local organisers; the perceived purpose of IGEO; and the limitations of conducting fieldwork in the context of an IGEO. (Contains 1 table.)