World of O News
Edgars Bertuks and Simone Niggli have been awarded with “The Orienteering Achievement of 2012″ titles in the mens and womens class, respectively! Bertuks – the new star in international orienteering this year – got an impressive 34% of the votes – nearly double the amount of the Czech WOC Relay team in second spot. Among the women, Simone Niggli won a clear victory ahead of the young Canadian Emily Kemp.
The vote has been decided by the big international readership of World of O – more than 4500 unique votes from nearly 60 different countries have been delivered – 50 % more votes than last year – making these results very representative for the worldwide orienteering community. Big thanks go to all voters and to the event sponsors Sardinia Five + Five, Danish Spring, Kopaonik Open, OOCup, Croatia Open, Sprint The Bay and Portugal O-Meeting.
Results
In the Men’s class Edgars Bertuks won with 33.9% of the votes ahead of the Czech WOC Relay team with 17.5%, Kiril Nikolov with 11.8% and Matthias Kyburz with 9.6%. In the Womens’s class Simone Niggli won with 28% of the votes ahead of Emily Kemp with 21.7%, Tove Alexandersson with 18.5% and Minna Kauppi with11.2%. The fascinating stories behind each nomination can be read at the poll page for men and women, respectively.
Interview: Edgars Bertuks – Achievement of 2012
¨
Nominated for: Coming from “nowhere”, becoming World Champion on WOC middle. And nearly as impressive: Another outstanding race on the WOC long distance the next day taking the bronze medal.
Most of the improvements came because of finding my own style and realizing my capabilities
Q: Congratulations on being awarded “The Orienteering Achievement of 2012″! What a year! Even you must be surprised with what you have achieved?
For the last couple of years it was truly hard to keep my motivation for continuing, but I guess there was something deep inside me that just did not let me to give up. Yes, I still find myself thinking whether those medals are real :), but that mostly happens while I am in my daily routines. It changes when I go to training camps or competitions and meet my friends.
Q: Everybody surely wonders how you could make these enormous improvements from one year to another. I guess better physical shape and mental balance must be part of the equation?
I think the key to my success lies in fact that I was finally able to put all pieces of the puzzle together at the right time. I knew that I had the potential already years ago, but every year I was missing something important – I couldn’t find the right balance. Of course I improved a lot lately both technically and physically, but still most of the improvements came because of finding my own style and realizing my capabilities.
Q: Can you name the three changes since the previous season which have been most important for your achievements in 2012?
I started to work with my coaches Jari and Mikko, I quit my job, and I made one really important offer to my girlfriend which she couldn’t refuse. ..
It was the best moment to try. Again I had everything to win and nothing to lose.
Q: Although the gold medal on WOC middle is the big one for the history books, many were even more impressed by the bronze medal on the WOC long distance the day after. Did you do anything special to be “hungry” again on the start line on the long distance?
The idea of going home right after winning the middle and never running again crossed my mind for a moment, but that was more like a joke. I guess my coaches did their task again. They helped me to steer my thoughts in the right direction. I was in my best shape ever, I had done three excellent races in a row – I had good cards in my hands. It was the best moment to try. Again I had everything to win and nothing to lose.
Q: In Jukola you came first out of the darkness on the first leg – your first big success this year. Do you do much of your orienteering training at night?
I have started to enjoy night orienteering more and more, lately. I find it very good for developing my day orienteering skills, and there is still a lot I could improve. For example I tend to gather too much unnecessary information during my runs. In night time, this issue is automatically fixed. To answer a question – I do less technical training than most other elite orienteers, so therefore I don’t do a lot of night O either.
I do less technical training than most other elite orienteers, so therefore I don’t do a lot of night O either
Q: Are you more a runner type orienteer or a technical type orienteer? And what are your track running records for 3000 meters and 5000 meters?
I would vote for the first one – a runner type, but I also like technical terrains as long as the courses do not become too long. My Personal Best in both 3000 meter and 5000 meter were run 3 years ago and are 8:42 (indoors) and 15:00 respectively.
Q: What do your days look like now in the winter? Have you changed anything about your training or your preparations compared to the last years?
Basically we have decided to stick with the same plan as last year. There will be only a few minor changes. I will leave for Portugal at the beginning of January – just like last year. The only thing that makes a difference from the year before is snow…
Q: Now that you already won a WOC gold medal – what kind of goals and dreams do you have for 2013?
My biggest goal and at the same time my biggest dream is to win the long distance gold one day. Next year and Finland is a great option!
Q: Any final words to your fans out there – there seem to be many!
Thanks for making me feel valued and honored out there. It gives me hope and power to believe that this is just a beginning. And now go out and run some more!
Interview: Simone Niggli – Achievement of 2012
Nominated for: Unbeatable after childbirth break: Victory in 11 of 13 World Cup races, 3 EOC gold medals, 3 WOC gold medals, winner of overall World Cup and winner of Nordic Orienteering Tour..
Q: Congratulations on being awarded “The Orienteering Achievement of 2012″ – for the 4th time! What a year! Victory in 11 of 13 World Cup races, 3 EOC gold medals, 3 WOC gold medals, winner of overall World Cup and winner of Nordic Orienteering Tour – this is maybe your best season ever?
Yes, it was definitively my best season ever! I’m very very proud of my performances this season. I ran on a very high level the whole year, and was at my very best when it was important. Sometimes I am wondering myself how I can do this ;-) Our sport has given me a lot of nice and emotional moments and I am very grateful for that.
Although I did not train as much quantity as I did some years ago, I managed to train more quality and therefore I could raise my level
Q: You were on top already in the first high level competitions you competed in after your childbirth – while last time there was a bit more struggle. Did you do anything special in your planning this time in order to succeed this well?
After the birth of the twins, I made a much better planning of my training than after Malin’s birth. Because I was scared of getting another injury, and because I wanted to get a second opinion, I asked Vroni (König-Salmi) to help me with the training. We made a smart set-up, and concentrated first on preparing the body for the physical load. In 2008 I ran 5 times a week one month after Malin’s birth, and then increased the amount further. One month after the twin’s birth in 2011 I ran only three times a week, and only from 10 to 20 minutes. In addition. I did a lot of alternative training like stabilization, strength, spinning bike, cross trainer, deep water running and nordic walking. I increased carefully, and in the beginning of the year I was back on a very good training level. Furthermore, I was very motivated for getting back on the top again. If you do not compete internationally for a year, you really get hungry. And because of the WOC on homeground, I was specially motivated of course.
Q: Can you name three key moments in your preparations which were important for your achievements in 2012?
The first is not a special moment, but the whole training season which went very well. As I mentioned I planned my comeback with my trainer smartly, and although I did not train as much quantity as I did some years ago, I managed to train more quality and therefore I could raise my level. Another key element was the first comparisons with my competitors in spring. As there were quite many good runners living or training in Switzerland, I got a lot of good opportunities to compare. Both in interval sessions and in orienteering competitions I got an important feedback that I was on the right way back. 10mila was another special moment for me. It showed me that I could perform very well in Scandinavian terrain as well, and that was a big boost for my self confidence before EOC in Falun.
This was really my distance on my homeground
Q: While studying pictures from WOC for this interview, I found some of a very angry Simone Niggli after the WOC middle distance – probably one of the races you wanted mostly to win this season. Have you found out why you did your big mistake – and how you shall act in the future in order to avoid this kind of “out-of-the-blue” mistakes?
For me the long distance at WOC was the most favored one – not because of the terrain, but this was really my distance on my homeground. But of course I wanted to be on the top also in the middle distance. It is hard to say why I did this stupid mistake. But I think it is a mixture of being under pressure, being unfocused in the wrong moment, and being disturbed by the TV-camera at the control. I do not have to change anything in my orienteering, I just have to do my work the whole way… Besides: There were a lot of people saying to me that they were relieved that even I was doing such mistakes… I think it is a part of our sport, and I am very happy that this was a big exception for me during all of the 10 World Championships I ran…
Q: In your younger years you were clearly more a runner type than a technical orienteer type – now the picture is a lot less clear. How do you see your strengths and weaknesses?
I think I developed well as an allround runner. Of course it is nice to have the physical speed which is needed, but I can trust my technical skills in all types of terrains nowadays. It is hard to note strong or weak sides because as a world class athlete you have to be good in all the important parts of orienteering.
Q: You won “The Orienteering Achievement of the Year” ahead of two juniors – Emily Kemp and Tove Alexandersson. Alexandersson has improved steadily and been very close to you when she has had perfect races – do you think Alexandersson will be your biggest rival in 2013?
I am really impressed of Tove, and I am sure that she has a big future. But I do not look too much on the competitors, but am rather concentrating on my own performance and I want to be satisfied with this.
I really like to run through an unknown forest, feeling the flow and then hitting the control in a hidden depression… what a feeling!
Q: What do your days look like now in the winter? Have you changed anything about your training or your preparations compared to the last years?
As usual it is a lot of basic work during these winter months. I like this period but I am already looking forward to the first competition in the next year. It is important that the combination of sports and family works well and I am very grateful that my husband Matthias helps me a lot. During winter there is much less travelling, and I like to be with my kids and see their development. There is not much change in my training, but I still try to introduce some new inputs every year.
Q: You have already won 20 WOC gold medals – what kind of goals do you have which still motivate you to push yourself hard on training every day after having won nearly every race an orienteer can win?
It is just the love for our sport! I really like to run through an unknown forest, feeling the flow and then hitting the control in a hidden depression… what a feeling!
Q: Any final words to your fans out there – there seem to be many!
Thanks a lot for your support, not only in this voting, but also during the whole year. I admit that I had not expected to be the winner of “The Orienteering Achievement” again, because it might be “boring”. Now I am extremely happy that I got your credit, and that motivates me to work hard also next season!
About the Orienteering Achievement of 2012
In this edition of Orienteering Achievement of the Year 9 men and 7 women were nominated for their great orienteering achievements in 2012. The nominated runners – and stories about why they were nominated – can be found here.
Other winners: Lucky voters and Sponsored links
Winners of prizes for lucky voters and sponsored links were published on Wednesday. Prize winners will be contacted by e-mail (but please contact Jan at jan@kocbach.net if you are listed as a winner but did not receive an email). We would also like to thank all the sponsors for sponsoring “The Orienteering Achievement of 2012″. Thanks to the sponsors World of O was able to draw lucky prize winners among those who voted in this years election.
Main sponsor: Sardinia Five + Five 2013- September 30th – October 10th 2013
- Prize offered: Package for 2 people consisting of entry fee for Sardinia Five+Five and 2 weeks accommodation in hotel B&B by PWT Italy – value about 2.000 euro
- Follow the Sun: 10 days of orienteering in beautiful Sardinia. – We have found a fantastic place at the small and picturesque city of Stintino, approximately 45 minutes driving north of Alghero airport. The wonderful beach La Pelosa (on the world’s top 10 list of best beaches) is also less than 2 km from our event center at Cala Rosa Club Hotel. More at Sardinia Five+Five webpage
Event sponsor: Danish Spring 2013- March 16th-17th 2013
- Prize offered: Package for 2 people consisting of start in all 3 races with accommodation 2 nights in double room at 4-star Hotel Hillerød – Total value is around 485 Euro
- Danish Spring takes place north of Copenhagen the 16 – 17 March 2013. It is an international spring premiere for the elite and everyone else, who can’t wait to get back in the woods after a long winter. Danish Spring is an intense weekend with one individual WRE mass start, one night relay and one day relay. See more at Danishspring.dk.
Event sponsor: Kopaonik Open – July 16th-21st 2013
- Prize offered: Event package for 3 persons containing entry, accommodation (in four bed studios or apartments, from Monday 15th- Sunday 21st og July), training, event T-shirt and participation in organized hiking tours with guide.
- Already for the 12th time in a row, “Kopaonik open 2013″ orienteering international championships will be held on Kopaonik, from 16th to 21st of July. For 6 competition days we have prepared 6 stages on 6 new maps. Come and enjoy orienteering on this “mountain of sun”. See more at the Kopaonik Open webpage.
Event sponsor: Croatia Open 2013 – July 23rd-28th 2013
- Prize offered: “Family” package consisting of entry, accommodation and training package for 4 persons (5 competitions, 4 trainings in training package, accommodation in sport hall)
- Croatia Open is a 5 day orienteering race – offering you different types of terrain from extreme karst to mediteranean and continental terrain. “Croatia open” attracts more than 1000 competitors from 40 countries offering you great orienteering holiday – combining orienteering with holidays on the Adriatic coast. See more at the Croatia Open webpage.
Event sponsor: COCup 2013 – July 26th-30th 2013
- Prize offered: “Family” package consisting of entry for 4 persons for the complete OOCup 2013 competition week.
- OOCup is a 5 Day orienteering event organized annually in Slovenia. The event is famous for its Karst orienteering and excellent combination of orienteering and holidays. See more at the OOCup webpage.
Event sponsor: Sprint The Bay 2013 – January 15th-17th 2013
- Prize offered: A package consisting of “2x Full Entries to STB 2013 + 2x Event T-Shirts”
- Dirty D Sprint the Bay is a series of 6 sprint orienteering events (both urban and non-urban) run over 3 days in the lovely sunny Hawkes Bay in New Zealand. Sprint the Bay 2013 is an official supporting event of the World Cup/Oceania Carnival. See more at the STB 2013 webpage
Event sponsor: POM 2013- February 9th – 12th 2013
- Prize offered: 2 packages, each consisting of entry fee + official dinner for 2 persons for complete POM 2013 (4 Days, 2 Model events, 2 Sprints and one official dinner)
- The Portugal “O” Meeting has become the international season opener for the world elite and hundreds of other orienteers spending a week or two in the Portugal in February and March. See more info at the POM 2013 webpage.
