8 fighting for top positions with less than two days to go:  Judith Wyder, Tove Alexandersson, Isia Basset, Csilla Gardonyi among the women and Colin Kolbe, Ahmet Kacmaz, Eskil Kinneberg and Tim Robertson among the men– all with fantastic orienteering achievements in 2018. 

Vote here by midnight CET December 18th – remember to read the stories behind the achievements to put the achievements into the big picture:

• The Orienteering Achievement of 2018 – Men
• The Orienteering Achievement of 2018 – Women

The stories behind the medals and the achievements  is what makes the sport truly fascinating

Winning a Gold medal at the World Championships is always a great achievement – but sometimes just making it to a World Championships final may be an even bigger achievement – depending on what your starting point was. The stories behind the medals and the great achievements  is what makes the sport truly fascinating! In “The Orienteering Achievement of the Year” these stories are highlighted – to make it possible to get a background for the amazing achievements.

The annual poll to find the best Orienteering Achievements of the year is organized by the major source for international orienteering news on the Internet – World of O.

All athletes nominated have been suggested by World of O’s readers –  we never had so many fantastic orienteering achievements suggested as this year, so several who would have really deserved a nomination could not be included this year. But there will be new chances next year!

Athlete photos are by IOF (Matias Salonen), WOC 2018 (Janis Ligats, Mareks Galinovskis) and JWOC 2018. See the poll pages for photo credits for the individual photos.

Great Sponsorprizes for “Lucky voters”!

Sponsors for the Orienteering Achievement of 2018 are Sardinia 3×5 days (Italy),  WOC 2019 Spectator races (Norway) , Antalya Orienteering Festival 2019 (Turkey), Scottish 6-Days Orienteering Strathearn 2019 (Scotland), Aguiar da Beira “O” Meeting 2019 (Portugal),  Lipica Open (Slovenia), International 24-hour relay (Germany), Danish Spring 2019 (Denmark), Velidken Cup 2019 (Bulgaria), Bubo Cup 2019 (Slovenia), Portugal “O” Meeting 2019 (Portugal), Edinburgh University’s big weekend 2019 (Scotland), Wawel Cup 2019 (Poland), NAOM 2019 (Portugal). See all details about the sponsor in the sponsor section below (Hint: Scroll down and take a look to see which prize you want to win as you can mark it when you vote – there are again many great prizes this year!).

Prizes valued to more than 5500 Euro are drawn among lucky voters & the ones suggesting nominations. The rules are as follows:

1. A person can only vote once in each of the categories (if several people share one internet connection, only one can vote, as the IP address is used to identify the voter along with the email-address of the voter).
2. Prizes from our sponsors will be drawn among all people voting.
3. In addition several sponsor prizes will be drawn among the ones suggesting GOOD nomination texts. Among all really good nomination texts, we will draw several great sponsor prizes.
4. The winners will be made public after the poll closes at World of O.

Timetable

On December 13th, all nominees are presented at World of O. The winner is decided in a vote amongst all the readers of World of O between December 13th and December 18th.

Sponsors

Event sponsor: Sardinia October 2019 – 3x 5days – week 40, 41 and 44 (Italy)

• Prize offered: Package for two persons consisting of entry fee and accommodation with formula bed and breakfast for week 41 in Sardinia (Italy).  Value about 1.240 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Follow the Sun in Italy and make your summer longer! Park World Tour Italy is organizing the 8^th edition of Five days Orienteering in October with 3 possibilities: week 40, 41 and 44. For 2019 we chose the beautiful Sardinia. We found a fantastic place, one hour driving from Cagliari airport. A wonderful beach is next to the event center. Read more on www.orienteering.it and www.facebook.com/pwtorienteering.

Event sponsor: WOC 2019. August 12 th – 17th 2019 (Norway)

• Prize offered: Package for two persons consisting of entry fee for all 6 WOC 2019 spectator races and hotel accommodation in one of the partner hotels of WOC 2019.  Value: TBD.  Transferable to other person.
• Description. Use this unique opportunity to watch the World’s best orienteers in the first ever forest World Orienteering Championships while enjoying orienteering in fantastic terrains. More information at https://woc2019.no/en/

Event sponsor: 5^th Antalya Orienteering Festival 2019 – October 27th– November 3rd (Turkey)

• 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: Scottish 6-Days Orienteering, Strathearn 2019, 28 July-3 August (Scotland)

• Prize Offered: Entry fees for two adults for all six races plus free entry to Sprint Race.  Additional free entry for two Juniors if required.  Transferable to other persons from same country. Value 500 Euro.
• Description: Strathearn 2019 is the 22nd staging of this very popular multi-day event in Scotland.  The organisers have applied for two World Ranking Events, Middle and Long Distance, and this would be great training just two weeks before WOC.  Strathearn and Highland Perthshire offers a much wider range of terrain types than some previous Scottish 6 Days so will test all your orienteering skills. Website www.scottish6days.com/2019

Event sponsor: Aguiar da Beira “O” Meeting 2019. January 25th– 27th 2019 (Portugal)

• Prize offered: Aguiar da Beira “O” Meeting 2019 Competition Package for 2 persons – including full entries to the event (Model Event, Sprint WRE, Long distance and Middle distance WRE), 5 night accommodation with breakfast and a 4-map package for each person to train around the event area. Value about 500 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Description:  After the huge success of ABOM 2019, Aguiar da Beira will again be host the best world athletes to run on one of the best Portuguese terrains. Besides, we are the host County of Junior World Orienteering Championships 2021. If you were born in 2001 or later, ABOM 2019 is a great opportunity to start your preparations! High quality mapmaking and amazing terrains are waiting for you! More info about ABOM 2019 at: http://abom2019.ori-estarreja.pt. If you want to have a training camp in Aguiar da Beira, check out http://orientedforlife.o-portugal.pt. We would also like to present you the “Oriented For Life Podcast”, a English speaking Podcast about Orienteering.

Event sponsor: Lipica Open 2019. March 9th – 13th 2019 (Slovenia)

• Prize offered: 2 packages – each for 2 people – consisting of: Entry to complete 5 Day Lipica Open competition + hard floor accommodation. Value about 320 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Lipica open: Popular season starter, with brand new area mapped for stage 5. Enjoy Slovenian karst terrain already in March. Kras region offers also excellent conditions for quality training camps. More at www.lipicaopen.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: Danish Spring, 29-31 March 2019 (Denmark)

• Prize offered: Package for 2 people consisting of free starts in all three competitions and 2 nights in Hostel Sankt Helene. Value about 280 Euro. Transferable to other persons.
• More information: The international spring opening in Denmark |  Junior and Youth competitions | Three World Ranking Events |Perfect preparation for JWOC 2019 in Denmark, WMOC 2019 in Latvia and WOC Sprint 2020 in Denmark | Cosy hostels, holiday homes, huts and hotels in the whole area. Ideal for your group’s or club’s spring training camp. Get it all at www.danishspring.dk

Event sponsor: VELIKDEN CUP – 26.- 29. of April 2019 (Bulgaria)

• Prize offered: Package for two persons consisting of entry fee and accommodation with breakfast for Velikden Cup 2019 – 4 days of orienteering during Orthodox Easter in Targovishte, Bulgaria. Value about 270 EUR. Transferable to other person.
• Enjoy an orienteering holiday and explore the Bulgarian culture off the beaten tracks. Four races in continental terrain including a WRE event. Velikden is the biggest club orienteering event in Bulgaria with more than 20 years of history. It’s a tradition now that most of the Bulgarian orienteers spend Easter holidays in Targovishte. Besides the orienteering there are many places to visit and explore so you will not regret a trip to Bulgaria. Find out more at http://cup.variant5.org or email us at teamcontact@variant5.org. Visit also our facebook page at: com/velikdencup.

Event sponsor: Bubo Cup 2019. July 17 th – 20th (Slovenia)

• Prize offered: 2 packages, each for 2 people consisting of entries for all 4 days of Bubo Cup 2019, Bubo Cup event T-shirt and training map for each. Value about 250 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• More information: 4 days of intricate and highly challenging karst terrain up on the Trnovo forest plateau. Possibility to camp right at the Finish area. There are only 3 days between ending date of Bubo cup and starting day of Oocup, which makes it feasible to combine both events. Read more at bubocup.com.

Event sponsor: POM 2019. March 1st – 5th 2019 (Portugal)

• Prize offered: 2 packages – each one for 2 persons – consisting of full entry fees (model events, 4 forest stages, sprint relay, night sprint and Trail-O). Value about 250 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Portugal O’ Meeting is already a well-known established international event, perfect for a season start. It’s common to see POM Super Elite winners on the podium of the following EOC and WOC. The 2019 Edition will be held in Figueira da Foz, the central coastline of Portugal. Terrains are typical Mediterranean forests on all stages. More info at www.pom.pt.

Event sponsor: Edinburgh University’s Big Weekend. January 25th – 27th 2019 (Scotland)

• Prize offered: Competition packages for 4 people – including entry to 3 races, the ceilidh and race t-shirts. Value about 250 EUR. Transferable to other persons.
• Description: EUOC invite you to our Big Weekend 2019. This is your chance to orienteer in Scotland’s capital; one of the world’s most beautiful cities and host of the World Orienteering Championships 2022. The three races will test all your orienteering skills, featuring a Night race, a technical Urban and a Classic on an extinct volcano – and the Ceilidh provides a traditional Scottish social evening for all to enjoy! Race website: https://euoc.wordpress.com/big-weekend/

Event sponsor: Wawel Cup 2019. July 10th – 14th 2019 (Poland)

• Prize offered: 2 packages – each for 2 people – consisting of entry to full Wawel Cup 38th edition (competition + additional indoor race + training maps) + accommodation on camping/hard-floor +! Wawel Cup T-shirt. Value about 250 euro. Transferable to other persons.
• Wawel Cup for WKS Wawel centennial! Wawel Cup 38. comprises the exciting indoor race, the possibility of seeing the capital city of Polish kings and beautiful surrounding nature! And foremost challenging terrains and orienteering… on the highest level. Together we will make it a real worldwide orienteering running feast! More info: http://wawelcup.pl/en/

Event sponsor: NAOM 2019. March 9th-10th 2019 / Orievents (Portugal)

• Prize offered: Competition + training package for 2 persons, consisting of: Entry for NAOM 2019 (09 March  2019 –  Middle distance + Night Sprint ; 10 March – Middle Distance WRE) +  training camp (2 trainings) + 2 days of accommodation in half board. Value about 250 EUR. 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.