Ruslan Glebov: Long distance races with unexpected good routechoice legs

Jan Kocbach November 26, 2015 Orienteering News Comments Off on Ruslan Glebov: Long distance races with unexpected good routechoice legs

– There are almost no boring courses when you push hard, Ukrainian Ruslan Glebov comments in this interview about the Course of the Year 2015. Glebov impressed the orienteering world with a 2nd place in the World Cup final middle distance – but his favorite courses from the 2015-season are nevertheless long distance courses.

Read on for a long interview with Ruslan Glebov. This interview is part of the “Course of the Year 2015″ contest organized by World of O. In the introduction article you can suggest YOUR favourite course for “Course of the Year 2015″ – there are prizes to be won worth more than 2500 Euro.

Q: What was the best course you run in 2015 – and why?

It might look not too interesting, but I would select:

World Cup long distance in Halden, Norway
WOC long distance in Scotland
World Cup long distance in Switzerland.

In Halden and Scotland (especially the first part) the terrains were rough and tough. Scotland was a new experience. In Arosa (SUI) it was very hard physically already from the beginning. All distances were set interestingly, with route choices – sometimes even with unexpected good routechoice legs, like leg 1-2 in Halden running to the right was a good option, or leg 7-8 in Switzerland was also a good one with the route to the right.

Q: What was the most interesting orienteering terrain you ran in in 2015 – and why?

I have nice memories from all the races above. I would probably add:

Middle and long from Swedish League in Vasterbotten

Swedish League #6 H21

» See map in omaps.worldofo.com

Swedish League #7 H21

» See map in omaps.worldofo.com

Training on Swedish Champs long 2013. I didn’t run that course, but terrain and maps are good.

Swedish Champs Long 2013

» See map in omaps.worldofo.com

After the WC in Switzerland me, Kratov and Volynska went for a visit to Czech sandstone o-camp in Doksy (thanks to Radek Novotny). That also was nice new experience (map 1 shown at the top and map 2 shown below).

Q: Usually the courses in interesting terrains are the ones you remember. But can you remember a very good course you ran in “boring” terrain this year?

Luckily, around Stockholm, especially south of Stockholm where I do stay now, there are not many boring terrains. We were in Bohuslan (Sweden) in the beginning of May on a camp for the World Cup and went to local competitions. The terrain was not very interesting, but still, the course was good for a such place. I also noted, that there are almost no boring courses when you push hard. You can start to do mistakes even on a M14 course.

– What is the worst course you ran in 2015?

It’s difficult to select a course. I would rather select the worst map. And there were a few during the trainings.

One of my bad memories is from one of the training maps for next years WOC long distance: Näsinge. The map is not bad in itself, but for me it was difficult to get in touch with it. Some of my friends ran there as well and they had no problems.

Näsinge långa sträckor/sluttning

» See map in omaps.worldofo.com

I would rather tell you about the worst race. And no doubt, my worst was WOC middle. The course itself was good and challenging in many places (especially control 24 :). That race was my goal of the year and, of course, I invested many hours in theory trainings. That day I had very bad orienteering execution all the way. I had a mistake to the 3rd control and saw Gernot Kerschbaumer, who started 1.5 minutes after me, on his way to the control. Then I continued to push hard, did not choose a route to 5 control, and I thought I was running to the 5 control, but that was actually the first control. Suddenly, before attacking it I, understood that I needed to go much further. Then I had a mistake to the 9th control. And all this disaster finished with a nightmare after the finish line when I got to know that I did not visit the 4th control. So, I got disqualified. The first unvisited control during competitions in my career, if I remember right.

Q: What is the most interesting course you ran (or saw) in your own home country in 2015?

I ran only around 10 events and trainings at home this year and I don’t have any maps with me. But here you can take a look on maps from the Ukrainian Championships: Map middle and Map long.

Q: Did you set any courses in 2015? If so, is it possible to share the best (in your opinion) with World of O’s readers?

I have set many courses. Usually, I don’t spend a lot of time on planning, because of lack of time, so they might look stupid or boring. Sometimes there is a specific need for training, like running on a straight line (map with legs of middle length).

2015.03.27 SWE Stockholm Nackareservatet

– What is the most interesting routechoice leg you remember from 2015? Did you take the right choice?

I would select the following:

Leg 2-3 from long distance WC in Tasmania. Didn’t run.
Legs 1-2 and 5-6 from long WC in Halden (1-2 I went straight and lost, 5-6 went right, probably among the best) and leg 5-6 from middle in Munkedal (lost some time).
Leg 12-13 from WOC long. Took wrong route.
Leg 7-8 long in Suisse. Took right one, but they are more or less similar.

Q: For many you are a new face in the orienteering elite – can you tell a bit about yourself and your career?

I’m from Ukraine, from a city with a name which is difficult to pronunciate, Dniepropetrovsk, which has a population of around 1 million. In 2005 I started running for the Danish club Farum, in 2009 for Norwegian Tyrving and from 2014 for Swedish OK Ravinen. The 2nd place at the last World Cup stage is probably my most valuable achievement so far, well, and the 1st place at this years Regional Championships in relay :)

Q: You had a great 2015 season – especially with the great race at the World Cup final. In your opinion, what are the three key factors which have helped you reach these amazing achievements?

It is difficult to say even one key factor. I felt since a while that I can perform better, but I have no clear view about why. Maybe one of the factors is that now I feel strong when running in the woods. And maybe the second one is in the big amount of technical trainings I have done the last few years.

Q: What is the race you look most forward to in 2016?

WOC, EOC and other high quality races, like Swedish League.

Q: What are your goals for next year – and do you plan to change your training and/or focus in order to reach your goals in 2016?

The main goal is WOC. I think I might need to change something, or add to current trainings. Probably,jumps and speed workouts on the track.

Q: Thanks a lot Ruslan, and good luck with preparations for the coming season!

Prizes from our Sponsors

Prizes from our Sponsors always makes it more fun! There will be a prize for the first one suggesting the course which ends up becoming “The course of the Year 2015″, and prizes drawn among the ones suggesting and voting. All prizes are transferable to other persons (you don’t have to travel yourself).

Event sponsor: Antalya Orienteering Festival 2016 – 29th October – 5th November

Prize offered: One big Antalya O-Meeting package consisting of 2 complete Antalya Orienteering Festival packages: Accommodation + Entry for all 5 races + All Transfers + The program consisting of presentations held by Håkan Carlsson. Value about 495 Euro. Transferable to other persons.
Antalya Orienteering Festival will be held for the 2nd time in Side by the Mediterranean coast of Antalya, Turkey. We provide 5 different terrains and challenging courses, good maps and good weather for orienteering holiday. Swedish National Team Head Coach Håkan Carlsson will join us for analysis and lectures about Sports psychology & Mental training. See more at www.antalyaofest.com

Event sponsor: Fjord-O 2016 – 13th – 17th July

Prize offered: 3 packages – each for 2 persons – for the full Fjord-O 2016 consisting of entry for 4 races in beautiful terrain with fjord view. Value about 450 Euro. Transferable to other persons.
The race courses are set among the most spectacular sceneries in «Fjord Norway», with the slogan «with a view to the fjord». Fjord-O Vest is 4 days of competitions allowing time for you to explore the beautiful nature in this area during your holiday. Stryn and Ålesund have many exciting attractions such as the Jugend town of Ålesund, the Geiranger Fjord, a hike up the longest uphill track in Norway to the Skåla summit at 1849 above the sea level or a visit to the famous Briksdal Glacier. See more at fjord-o.no.

Event sponsor: Portugal “O” Meeting 2016 – February 5th-9th 2016

Prize offered: 4 packages – each for 2 persons – transferable to other person. Consisting of entry to complete 4 day Portugal “O” Meeting 2016 – 4 official races + 1 Urban Night (Middle, Urban Nigth, Middle, Long-WRE, Long). Value about 390 EUR.
POM is the world’s biggest winter time orienteering event, and is considered by many as the official opening of the competition season for its high quality organization and for receiving the top runners of the world. We expect to have 2000+ runners – last year POM had 2300 runners! Besides new maps, challenging terrains and courses you’ll be able to experience the rich gastronomy, as the famous cheese, olive oil and honey (considered among the best in the world). Have a chance to enjoy the friendship of locals and explore the beautiful and untouched nature. The WRE day will be the long distance on 8th Feb.More at http://www.pom.pt.

Event sponsor: Slovak Karst Cup 2016. 21st-24th July 2016

Prize offered: 3 packages for 2 people – each consisting of: entry for 4 competitions (2xmiddle, 2x shortened long), accommodation for 4 nights in camping, 3 training maps, Event T-shirts and headtube.
Value about 360 Euro, transferable to other person(s).
Slovak Karst Cup is the favorite multiday o-event in Slovakia. It is usually organized in karst terrains of Silická planina (plateau) or Plesivecka planina (plateau), which are located in National park Slovenský kras. You can find many depressions, mixed forest, semiopen or open areas there. And also lots of natural and historical attractions in surroundings after competition. For Karst Cup 2016 we have chosen one of the most attractive terrains, which where used partly for JWOC 2012 (open or semiopen areas of Silická planina) and fully for WUOC 2006 (forest area of Plešivecká planina). The competition can be a very good opportunity for training for WUOC 2016 participiants. More at http://www.tuke.sk/obeh/karst

Event sponsor: SIVEN MOC 2016 – March 4th – March 10th 2016

Prize offered: Full package for 1 person consisting in package for SIVEN MOC camp + entry fee for SIVEN MOC Championship in Bulgaria – March 2016. The package includes 7 trainings as shown on the program, 3 competitions of MOC Championship, 8 nights accommodation. Value about 349 Euro. Transferable to other person.
XIV edition of MOC, with main sponsor SIVEN, for the first time in Bulgaria. Event centre in Bansko. Find your Bulgaria! MOC stands for Mediteranian Orienteering Championship – MOC is an annual event organized at the beginning of spring season, in southern countries with softer climate. More info at www.sivenmoc.com and www.orienteering.it

Event sponsor: Orievents / NAOM 2016. 13th – 14th February 2016

Prize offered: Competition + training package for 2 persons, consisting of: Entry for NAOM 2016 (13February 2016 – Middle distance + Night Sprint ; 14 February – Middle Distance WRE) + training camp (6 trainings) + 3 days of accommodation in half board. Value about 320 Euro. Transferable to other persons.
Orievents / GD4C’s Training Camps “Alto Alentejo” are an excellent training opportunity for Orienteering of good quality during the winter. Start the new season in training camps in Alto Alentejo, Portugal! More at www.naom.pt and about the training camp at Orievents.

Event sponsor: Lipica Open 2016. 12th – 16th March

Prize offered: 2 packages – each for 2 people – consisting of: Entry to complete Lipica Open competition + hard floor accommodation in Postojna. Value about 320 euro. Transferable to other persons.
In 2016 Lipica open will again be organized as a 5 day event. Again some great terrains! Training conditions in this part of Europe are now better than ever – both on forest maps and on sprint maps of nice little towns on the Adriatic coast! More at www.lipicaopen.com