World of O News
François Gonon, Yuri Omeltchenko, Øystein Kvaal Østerbø, Michail Mamleev, Lukas Bartak, Marian Davidik, Matthias Müller, Thomas Dlabaja, Dana Brozkova, Elise Egseth, Lene Bergersen, Seline Stalder, Annika Billstam and Eva Juřeníková to name a few. Indeed the organizers have managed to get an impressive start list for this years only PWT round – which is staged in Longio Saturday November 15th with qualification Friday November 14th.
The Fridays race is a qualification race ; the best 10 runners in the qualification will qualify for the Final on Sunday. In addition the invited runners have a wild card and will go directly to the finals. The first start in the qualification Friday is at 11.00 CET – last start is at 12.10 CET. The map extract to the right is from the final on Saturday.
Saturdays race promises to be a very interesting race. Many of the top runners will travel on to the Venice Street Orienteering after the race on Saturday, which is staged in Venice on Sunday.
Information from the organizers
Countdown for the 2008 final
In the Palladian year – the 5th century from the birth of Andrea Palladio – Lonigo (Vicenza) hosts the Park World Tour final 2008 of Orienteering: sport, environment, tourism and culture in a city marked by the great architect.
On Nov. 14 and 15 with the single stage in Lonigo (VI) returns to Italy the Park World Tour International Orienteering circuit that from 1996 brings the best world athletes of the Sprint specialty to compete in major parks and historic city centres. The event in Lonigo, opening leg of the third edition of Orienteering Adriatic Meeting to be disputed is the first stage of qualifications on Nov. 14 in the Berici Hills and the finals the following day in the city’s historic district and the park of Villa San Fermo before the final event on Sunday in Venice.
Not only a weekend of sports, but also of culture, tourism and gastronomy, with visits to the Palladian Villas, the Basilica and the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, tasting of typical specialties based on polenta and baccalà, the sports festival of the schools in Vicenza, awards to the local athletes, Davide Rebellin and Tatiana Guderzo, Beijing Olympic medalists, mapping and photography exhibitions, conferences on sports-culture and the importance of orienteering at school.
There are nearly 500 foreign athletes so far entered the Park World Tour Lonigo representing 18 nations, amongst them, the world orienteering champions Dana Broskova (Czech Rep.) and Thierry Gueorgiou (France) and the Chinese national team(with 10 representatives), in confirmation of orienteering as an emerging reality. Particular attention was dedicated to social and schools with paths for the diverselyabled and the involvement of 800 students of primary and secondary schools also come from outside the region (Puglia). The event in Lonigo, promoted by asd Sphera in collaboration with Park World Tour Italy, is also an occasion to celebrate the thirty-year anniversary of the FISO Vicenza Guidance(1978-2008).
Lonigo, lying at the foot of Berici hills, counting numerous villas, palaces and scenic squares, is a city of wine (there is the largest winery in Europe) headquarters of the oldest Exposition, The Horse Fair of Italy and home of the speedway: spectacular motorist discipline, in which skeleton motorbikes, with no speed change and brakes powered by methyl alcohol, run on oval tracks. Lonigo is well worth the visit for three major works of the’500’s: the Villa Pisani Bonetti in Bagnolo, country residence designed by Palladio, the Rocca, small “Rotonda”, by Vincenzo Scamozzi, a pupil of the most famous architect Palladio and Palazzo Pisani, attributed Michele Sanmicheli.
