Isia Basset’s favourites: France for city – Czech Republic for forest

– This sprint  was really interesting because the terrain is a residential area with many towers where a lot of pedestrian streets in-between the buildings are on several levels, Isia Basset says about her favourite Sprint course of 2018. – You had to think twice before taking a route choice that sometimes could be quite far away from the red line.

French Isia Basset had her big breakthrough in 2018 with a bronze medal at the World Orienteering Championships (WOC) Middle distance – probably the biggest surprise in all of the WOC! Basset’s brother Lucas has been part of the world elite for some years already, now they are two in the family with WOC medals.

This interview is part of the “Course of the Year 2018″ contest organized by World of O. In the introduction article you can suggest YOUR favourite course for “Course of the Year 2018″ – there are prizes to be won worth more than 6000 Euro.

Interview Isia Basset

Q: What was the best forest course you ran in 2018 – and why?

 The best course I ran in the forest in 2018 was the World Cup Middle distance in Czech Republic in Turnov. The sand stone terrain is so special, such a cool terrain to run in, very clean on the ground but really steep and the boulders are very impressive by their size. The course offered many routechoices that could make huge differences. It was a great race to end the international season in the forest.

Q: What was the best sprint course you ran in 2018 – and why? 

I ran many good sprints this year (WOC Sprint, EOC Sprint, …), but the best one is a course that I test-ran. It was the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes Sprint championship (regional championship) that my club organised in Le Tonkin- Villeurbanne. This sprint  was really interesting because the terrain is a residential area with many towers where a lot of pedestrian streets in-between the buildings are on several levels. You had to think twice before taking a route choice that sometimes could be quite far away from the red line. The course was also well balanced; there were some part where you could decide to take easier choices, less risky, where you could run maximum speed.

Q: What was the most interesting orienteering terrain you ran in in 2018 – and why?

One of the best terrains I ran in in 2018 was during a training camp in January with the French team, where we went for the first time to a region called Lozère and we discovered some brand new maps which were really technical. The forest is made of boxtrees, which is very dense with  low visibility, but the green is still crossable. In some areas you have to orienteer a bit like during the night when the huge boulders only appear in your sight at the very last moment. I didn’t expect to discover such a tricky terrain in a new area, and that was very enjoyable.

Q: What is the most interesting course you ran (or saw) in your own home country in 2018?

The most interesting course in France according to me was the 4th stage of the OOCup week in Les Plans d’Hotonnes. I couldn’t run it since it was only a couple of days before the beginning of WOC, but it looked very interesting and everyone I heard talking about this race absolutely loved it.  It was a long middle distance (winning time around 50 minutes) with some longer legs and some parts with a lot of short controls in very detailed areas. I could run on the map this autumn, and it is fantastic there. Even if it is really detailed, the map is easily readable (the scale 1:7500 helps though) and the forest is very open. The ground is also very clean compared to similar areas nearby. There are not so many stones on the ground, so you can run fast.

Q: What is the most interesting routechoice leg you remember from 2018? Did you take the right choice?

Probably the EOC Long with the choice 9-10. There was this huge hill that we had to avoid either by the left or the right side (not a good option to climb it), and I picked the left side. My choice was the wrong option since a lot of the best girls lost times there, and in addition I completly missed the last part of the routechoice where I lost even more time running extra distance and attacking the control as if I had picked the right route choice (it’s quite often not good to run an S route^^).

Q: Did you set any courses in 2018? If so, is it possible to share the best (in your opinion) with World of O’s readers? 

This year was actually the first time that I was the course setter for a real competiton (I have set only trainings before). It was a regional competition, a Mixed-relay by teams of 3 on a campus. The race took place only a few hours after the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes regional sprint championship (that I am mentioned earlier in this interview). The terrain is very simple and fast, but I tried to put a lot of forkings into the course to make it fun.

Q: What is the race you look most forward to in 2018?

WOC Middle! It is always the race I look the most forward and that I prepare the most for.

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 2018?

For next year the biggest change in my training is that I am working fulltime during the whole winter (to finish my engineering degree) so the winter volume will be slightly reduce without as many training camps as it used to be. But the WOC is quite late in the summer, so I will have time to get some proper orienteering training camps to prepare specifically for Norwegian terrain.

My goal for next year is to be more stable during the entire season, both physically and technically. And off course to be fit and ready for WOC!

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 2018″, 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: WMOC 2019 Public Race. July 4th – 12th (Latvia)

• Prize offered: Competition + accommodation package for 2 persons including: 5 races (two sprints in Riga, 3 forest races),  accommodation 8 nights with breakfast in twin/double room, 4-12 July 2019 . Total prize value: EUR 820.
• Watch the world’s best master runners in action and find out how good you are in the same terrains! Be equally prepared for a maze of narrow streets in Riga and a fast run in a perfect dune forest. Watch out – it may be 8 nights! And, certainly, enjoy the sun and beach immediately after your run! Read more: www.wmoc.2019.lv

Event sponsor: 52nd Kainuu Orienteering Week (KOW), June 30th – July 5th 2019 (Finland)

• Prize offered: 4 packages, each consisting of 2 free participations for the whole week in any class (competition classes or open courses) at Kainuu Orienteering Week 2019. Total value up to 800 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Open and International Orienteering Week in Finland, Sotkamo, Tipasoja (WOC2013 terrain)
• More information: Kainuu Orienteering Week is the Finlands’s biggest orienteering week and the world´s second oldest orienteering week, as it has been held annually since the year 1966. Kainuu O-Week is held in the Kainuu region of Finland and traditionally the event is held in the beginning of July the week 27. In 2019 Kainuu Orienteering Week will go back to perfect pine forrest and moor terrains of the WOC2013 events. Come to enjoy the orienteering and holiday week for the whole family in the great sceneries and terrains and pure and beautiful nature of Kainuu region in Finland. First entry period will be closed on 30th of november 2018. For more information see www.rastiviikko.fi.

Event sponsor: MOC 2019 – March 15th – 17th 2019 (Malta)

• Prize offered: Competition and hotel package for two persons: Entry for two  person at the 15th anniversary of MOC Mediterranean Orienteering Championship in Malta, including 3 nights accommodation half board. Value about 650 EUR. Transferrable to other persons.
• You are welcome to MOC 2019! The 15th anniversary Mediterranean Open Championship Orienteering 2019 is organized on March 15th – March 17th. Great events with World class runners with 3.000 euro of prize money! Follow the sub! Read more at the competition web-page and on www.orienteering.it and www.facebook.com/pwtorienteering

Event sponsor: Durmitor Orienteering Challenge 2019. August 27th – 31st 2019 (Montenegro)

• Prize offered: 2 packages – each for 2 people– consisting of: Entry to complete 5 Day Durmitor Orienteering Challenge, + 2 x 2 special T shirts „My life, my sport-Orienteering“ product of Oland. Total value about 620 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• At the end of summer 2019, after WOC in Norway, you can visit the exceptionally nice and beautiful 5 Days of orienteering in the Montenegro mountain pearl Durmitor. For most orienteers this is a new area, offering much more than orienteering. Also excellent conditions for club trainings with new maps and terrains at 1500 meters altitude. More infomation: Dochallenge.me

Event sponsor: 5^th Antalya Orienteering Festival 2018 – October 27th– November 3rd

• Prize offered: One Big Antalya O-Meeting package consisting of 1 complete Antalya Orienteering Festival package: Accommodation + Entry for all 6 races for one person. Value about 540 Euro. Transferable to other person.
• Antalya Orienteering Festival will be held for the 3rd time in Side by the Mediterranean coast of Antalya, Turkey. We provide 6 different terrains and challenging courses, good maps and good weather for orienteering holiday. See more at www.antalyaofest.com

Event sponsor: Sprint Scotland, June 20th-23rd 2019 (Scotland)

• Prizes offered – 2 complete packages for 2 people each – All training / races + event t-shirt. Total value around 400 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Sprint Scotland will again host 4 days of high quality sprint orienteering in the Stirling/Edinburgh area. 2 training days with warm-up sprint races, followed by a weekend with 3 sprint/urban races (WREs), as well as three talks about sprint orienteering. Short travel from Edinburgh and Glasgow. More information here: http://sprintscotland.co.uk

Software sponsor: OCAD Orienteering 3-year license

• Prize offered: One 3-year licence for the software “OCAD Orienteering″.  Value about 350 EUR. Transferable to other person (before activation).
• More information: OCAD 2018 Orienteering – Perfect to Produce Orienteering Maps. This edition is dedicated for orienteering map making with a step-by-step wizard for analyzing of LiDAR data, mobile geodata capturing, smart editing and drawing tools, generalization tools, desktop publishing, course setting and much more. Read more at ocad.com.

Event sponsor: OOCup 2019 – July 24th – 28th (Slovenia)

• Prize offered: 2 packages – each for 2 people – consisting of: Entry for the complete 5 days OOCup competition plus OOCup 2019 T-shirt for each competitor. Total value around 325 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• In 2019 OOcup goes back to where it all started back in 2002. Stunning orienteering areas around Soriška planina will deliver memorable orienteering challenge for everyone. Even though Soriška planina is well known among orienteers, we’ve mapped a lot of new exciting areas, so there will be plenty of unseen for all participants.  Gorenjska region with Lakes Bohinj and Bled and Triglav national part is considered as the most beautiful part of Slovenia by many. More at oocup.com.

Event sponsor: 22. International Thuringian 24-Hour relay. May 31st – June 2nd 2019 (Germany)

• Prize offered: Two packages, each package consists of one 6-person team for the 24-Hour-Orienteering Relay (min age 15) and one 4-person team for the youth relay. Included in the 24-Hour Relay is also opening party, parking, camping and open-air swimming pool.  Total value about 300 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Description. Be part of the world’s longest orienteering relay starting on Saturday June 1st 2019 at 9:00 AM and finishing on Sunday 2nd of June 2019 at 9:00 AM. The competition takes place in a typical German low mountain range in the middle of beautiful nature. More information here: https://www.24h-ol.de/en/

Event sponsor: VARIANT 5 DAYS – August 13th – 17th 2019 (Bulgaria)

• Prize offered: Package for two persons consisting of entry fee and accommodation for Variant 5 Days 2019 – 5 days of orienteering in Stara planina mountains, Kalofer, Bulgaria. Value about 270 EUR. Transferrable to other person.
• Enjoy an unforgettable orienteering holiday in the beautiful nature of Bulgaria.Five races in mountain terrain including a chasing start. Variant 5 Days is an affordable way to experience and explore the Stara Planina mountain region near Kalofer, just below the highest peak of the mountain – Botev, 2376m asl. Besides the great terrains there are many sightseeing options around including mineral pools, which makes it a perfect place to visit during the summer of 2019. Plan a trip to Bulgaria now and you will have a splendid vacation in August. Find out more at http://5days.variant5.org or email us at teamcontact@variant5.org. Visit also our facebook page at: com/variant5cup.

Event sponsor: Kapa 2019 – June 28th – 30th (Latvia)

• Prize offered: Two family entry packages to Kapa 3days, where each package includes entry for two adults and one child, space for a tent at the event camping and a car parking voucher. Total value around 250 EUR. Transferable to other person.
• More information: Kapa 3-days is the largest orienteering event in Baltics with 2000 participants from around 20 countries. It is a nice, long o-weekend for families – from Friday to Sunday. The best new maps and terrains are available, kindergarten at the event centre, fantastic prizes and great atmosphere, including live music in the evening. Just come with your family and relive WOC 2018 as the course planners are the same! This year’s event page: 2019.kapa.lv. Facebook page: facebook.com/Kapa3days, Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/912631195590739/

Event sponsor: Orienteering Adventure 2019. August 7th – 11th (Czech Republic)

• Prize offered: Entry fee for two persons with accommodation in hotel Lenka in the event centre during the competitions (6th -11th of August). Value: 250 EUR, transferable to other persons. Note that the package is available only until the first entry deadline (April 30th 2019).
•  Orienteering Adventure take place in the biggest mountains in Czech – The Giant Mountains. It is a national park nicknamed as “Tundra in the heart of Europe”. You can expect clean mountain forest with poor path network, stone fields, a few rocks, one stage in poor visibility area, sprint in a mountain village, beer relay and even more. Read more here: http://www.o-adventure.cz (In English from early December)

Event sponsor: Easter4 2019 – April 19th – 22th (Slovenia)

• Prize offered: One package for 2 people – consisting of: Entry for the Easter4 competition in the beautiful Izola & Kras regions, Slovenia + accommodation in pension (B&B). Value about 250 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• After the 2018 edition on Cres island, in 2019 we go back to Slovenia. The race will be organized by the same team and quality standard as you might be used to from Lipica open, OOcup and Bubo cup. Excellent mixture of tough karst terrain and one Sprint stage, partly on newly mapped areas. Did you know that Swiss star Simona Aebersold took part in all 3 editions so far? More at easter4.com.