Home / Orienteering News / Jukola 2014: Three in a row for Kalevan Rasti!

Jukola 2014: Three in a row for Kalevan Rasti!

krvictory

Thierry Gueorgiou did it again for Kalevan Rasti. After a difficult night for the Finnish team, with many mistakes in the tough and technical terrain, the world stars Fabian Hertner and Thierry Gueorgiou decided the relay for Kalevan Rasti on the two last legs. The last leg was a real thriller – with three teams fighting for victory!

In the end the fight was between Thierry Gueorgiou (Kalevan Rasti), Fredrik Johansson (Lidingö) and Jonas Leandersson (Södertälje). Read on for the development leg by leg.

This was the 6th Jukola victory for Kalevan Rasti – 5 of these have been with Thierry Gueorgiou on the team.

Leg 1: Bækkelaget with short visit in the Jukola lead

– People run fast the first 500 meters, then it calms down

With most of the teams setting their top runners on the last legs, Carl Godager Kaas (Bækkelaget) knew that all he had to be at the front of the pack in the first leg of Jukola was to make a safe race.

– People run fast the first 500 meters, then it calms down, Carl Godager Kaas commented after his race.

Godager Kaas did an excellent race – running alone most of the race. In the end the lead was 1:17 down to IFK Lidingö in second place. Of the top teams Vaajakosken Terä lost 3 minutes, Kalevan Rasti lost 3:30 and Hiidenkiertäjät finished the leg all the way down in 88th – nearly 8 minutes behind.

Results after leg 1

jukola0599
(Full leg results)


Leg 2: Kalevan Rasti takes the lead

On the second last control the pack passed Lidingö’s Carlsson while Carlsson searched for the control

While Bækkelaget’s Rune Olsen did a big mistake early in the race, Lidingö’s Anders Carlsson used the opportunity to build up a 2 minute lead. The TV-viewers could hear Carlsson asking if we was in the lead – clearly focusing on results rather than his orienteering. That might not have been the reason for his mistakes later on in the course, but the attitude was very different from the one Kalevan Rasti’s Philippe Adamski showed after his race. Carlsson did first several small mistakes – and then a really big one on the second last control.

On the second last control the pack passed Lidingö’s Carlsson while Carlsson searched for the control. Kalevan Rasti’s Philippe Adamski was strongest of the followers – bringing Kalevan Rasti into the lead. This could have been the last time the followers saw Kalevan Rasti, but this was not Kalevan Rasti’s year to dominate all of the relay …

Results after leg 2

jukola0054
(Full leg results)


Leg 3: Sweden to the front

– Struggling with stomach problems and vomiting several times during the race

Leg 3 was the leg of the big mistakes. It was worst for Kalevan Rasti’s Asikainen who lost 8:15 to the best leg time on this leg – struggling with stomach problems and vomiting several times during the race.

But many other good orienteers also did big mistakes – letting Järla’s Olle Boström go from 19th place (+3:36) to the leading group of the race after a very good night orienteering race.

– It was a very nice night leg. I went out some time behind, and was very focused on doing my own race. I had a nice flow. There were many tracks, and I could have good speed, Boström said after the race. – It was real nightorienteering in the start, but in the end i noticed that it was daylight.

Södertälje’s Liljeqvist came first to changeover after a good finish sprint. With that three Swedish teams were in the lead of the race. Södertälja, Järla and Lidingö.

Results after leg 3

jukola0055
(Full leg results)


Leg 4:

On the 4th leg there was less happening. Södertälje’s Pawlak started very well, but did a 2 minute mistake towards the end of the race – leaving the lead to IFK Lidingö’s Erik Ivarsson Sandberg a few seconds ahead of Järla. VaTe and Kalevan Rasti kept their distance to the leaders – while Halden lost a few minutes and now was at 6:25.

Results after leg 4

jukola0058
(Full leg results)


Leg 5: Lidingö keeps the lead

Cite

IFK Lidingö’s Øystein Kvaal Østerbø started the leg with a 6 second lead to Järla. Kvaal Østerbø did a good race, coming back first after 5 legs with a lead of 1:03 to Södertälje’s Scott Fraser, running the fastest leg time.

– It was quite tough. I run a safe race, and took it easy into the controls when it was tricky, Østerbø said after the race.

VaTe’s Jonne Lakanen came 3rd at 2:15. Järla’s Kasper Hagler had a bad day, losing more than 5 minutes.

Big favourite Kalevan Rasti had to enter a reserve on this leg just ahead of the race. Instead of relay World Champion Jan Prochazka, Kalevan Rasti set up Simo-Pekka Fincke to run this leg for Kalevan Rasti. Fincke struggled a bit – losing some time. He finished the leg at 5:46 down from Lidingö, together with Halden. But both Kalevan Rasti and Halden were still in the game – two legs to go with world stars on the last two legs…

Results after leg 5

jukola0163
(Full leg results)


Leg 6: Mårten Boström keeps the lead – Fabian Hertner does his job

Kalevan Rasti’s Hertner pushed hard, and got closer and closer throughout the leg

With nearly 6 minutes up to the lead at the start of the 6th leg, this is where Kalevan Rasti had to start picking second by second on the leader to keep the victory dreams alive. Hertner has done this job many times before – and the fast Swiss runner did it again.

While Lidingö’s Boström and the other teams did some tiny mistakes, Kalevan Rasti’s Hertner pushed hard, and got closer and closer throughout the leg. From 5:46 behind Lidingö at the changeover to 4:34 behind at the first TV-control after 2 km, then 4:13 at TV-2, then 3:11 at TV-3 and finally only 2:42 behind at the changeover. With this the scene was set for a real fight between some of the biggest stars of orienteering on the last leg: Fredrik Johansson, Jonas Leandersson, Thierry Gueorgiou, Valentin Novikov, Olav Lundanes, Pasi Ikonen and Millinger.

Results after leg 6

jukola0272
(Full leg results)


Leg 7: The decision – by Thierry Gueorgiou again!

Again the scene was set for Thierry Gueorgiou and Kalevan Rasti. Gueorgiou’s start position was perfect: 2:40 up to the leader is just enough to make the French star hungry and offensive – and just little enough to make it very possible with a normal race.

Gueorgiou started the same way Hertner – picking second by second. After 2.3 km the gap was down to 1:37. After 4.1 km down to +47 seconds. And finally after 5 km Gueorgiou was up in the lead. Both Johansson and Leandersson showed respect – going in behind Gueorgiou. From here on this was a fight between three teams: Kalevan Rasti, Lidingö and Södertälje. And except for a tiny forking difference at control 10, the three teams had the same forking for the rest of the course.

Middle distance specialist against long distance specialist

Leandersson showed signs of struggling every time he was shown at TV-controls

Gueorgiou pushed hard, trying to open a gap to the two others. Leandersson showed signs of struggling every time he was shown at TV-controls, and around 10-11 km one could even start seeing it at the GPS tracking. Finally at 11.6 km it was over for Leandersson – the gap extending to 18 seconds at the TV control after 11.6 km, and soon increasing to a minute and more. Two left in the fight: Gueorgiou against Johansson. The middle distance specialist against the long distance specialist – although Gueorgiou has shown that he masters all disciplines equally well.

Gueorgiou continued to push hard, with Johansson behind. But at the same time Gueorgiou prepared himself for the last controls, prereading the map.

– My plan was very clear for the last part [of the race]. I was nearly not reading the map at all, Gueorgiou said after the race – having memorized the map for the last controls.

Gueorgiou pushed very hard the last few controls – and decided before reaching the last control.

– It went very well. I felt very strong. We had been struggeling a lot during this relay but we never gave up. It is the price you have to pay if you want to win three times in a row, Gueorgiou told in the winners interview.

Final results
1 1 Kalevan Rasti FIN 7:59:02
1 Jere Pajunen 1:10:22
2 Philippe Adamski 1:16:44 2:27:06
3 Aaro Asikainen 1:15:03 3:42:09
4 Hannu Airila 53:26 4:35:35
5 Simo-Pekka Fincke 51:18 5:26:53
6 Fabian Hertner 1:08:03 6:34:56
7 Thierry Gueorgiou 1:24:06 7:59:02
2 16 IFK Lidingö SOK SWE 7:59:13
1 Jo Forseth Indgaard 1:08:13
2 Anders Carlsson 1:21:04 2:29:17
3 Filip Dahlgren 1:09:45 3:39:02
4 Erik Ivarsson Sandberg 51:35 4:30:37
5 Öystein Kvaal Österbö 50:30 5:21:07
6 Mårten Boström 1:11:07 6:32:14
7 Fredrik Johansson 1:26:59 7:59:13
3 13 Södertälje Nykvarn Orienter SWE 8:02:51
1 Ralph Street 1:09:18
2 Kent Ohlsson 1:17:53 2:27:11
3 Erik Liljeqvist 1:10:17 3:37:28
4 Bartosz Pawlak 55:54 4:33:22
5 Scott Fraser 48:48 5:22:10
6 Eric Börjeskog 1:10:05 6:32:15
7 Jonas Leandersson 1:30:36 8:02:51
4 4 Halden SK NOR 8:06:21
1 Espen Fiskum 1:09:28
2 Marcus Millegård 1:21:13 2:30:41
3 Mattias Karlsson 1:11:13 3:41:54
4 Mats Haldin 55:08 4:37:02
5 Sören Bobach 49:49 5:26:51
6 Magne Dählie 1:09:29 6:36:20
7 Olav Lundanes 1:30:01 8:06:21
5 7 Vaajakosken Terä FIN 8:07:25
1 Antti Anttonen 1:09:56
2 Jani Lakanen 1:17:15 2:27:11
3 Håvard Lucasen 1:11:51 3:39:02
4 Toni Saari 53:41 4:32:43
5 Jonne Lakanen 50:39 5:23:22
6 Tue Lassen 1:13:07 6:36:29
7 Pasi Ikonen 1:30:56 8:07:25
6 3 Hiidenkiertäjät FIN 8:09:55
1 Olli-Pekka Koistinen 1:14:39
2 Lauri Sild 1:17:48 2:32:27
3 Oskari Liukkonen 1:09:26 3:41:53
4 Olle Kärner 53:48 4:35:41
5 Matti Kivelä 52:56 5:28:37
6 Timo Sild 1:07:20 6:35:57
7 Valentin Novikov 1:33:58 8:09:55
7 9 Järla Orientering SWE 8:14:59
1 Martin Vister 1:10:25
2 David Bejbom 1:20:17 2:30:42
3 Olle Boström 1:06:48 3:37:30
4 Erik Andersson 53:13 4:30:43
5 Kaspar Hägler 55:57 5:26:40
6 Håkon Jarvis Westergård 1:09:51 6:36:31
7 Mattias Millinger 1:38:28 8:14:59

About Jan Kocbach

Jan Kocbach is the founder of WorldofO.com - taking care of everything from site development to writing articles, photography and analysis.

Check Also

map_sprintrelayeoc2023

EOC Sprint Relay 2023: Maps, Results and Quick Analysis

Sweden won a clear victory in the European Championships (EOC) Sprint Relay ahead of Switzerland ...