Comments on: News from IOF about WOC in the future

By: Renchix

Renchix — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 09:28:53 +0000

Regarding the Long distance it is in a reasonable choice to leave out the qualification race, as in my mind qualification races for the long so far has been too short to really select the real endurance athletes, which is main characteristic needed for good long distance runner/orienteer. 50-60min qualification races are more like lengthened middle distances (if we look at the length only not the technical skills needed), so sometimes runners qualified are not really capable of finishing the full distance in the final, as they are more middle/technically skilled orienteers that suits more for middle distance.

By: Samo

Samo — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 18:10:45 +0000

You misunderstood my point. They could rename “Long Final” just into “Long” but important thing is a course itself. If you are running 1.500m in Athletics World Champs you run the same course in qual. and in Final if you get in there. Achievement for a runner is not just a final position but also time, % in time behind the winner and for some maybe just to perform their best regardless of final position or time. It may sounds stupid when we talk about Elite orienteering but small nations don’t have proper elite group of runners. Orienteering is more or less recreational sport with few of them trying to make competitive sport out of it. These 20 years is meant in this context. Not out of Final as achievement which they haven’t been able to achieve but 20 years out of running Final course which has lead to lack of experiences, excitement.

By: LQ

LQ — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 16:54:54 +0000

Why do we want an extra discipline anyway? To make it more-spectator friendly?
Because WOC this year had good arenas, and good spectating opportunities but this joy was bittersweet as the events were not in nice orienteering areas.

Also we need to ask ourselves, do we want to please the media, please the Olympics, please the world with our sport and as a result lose a lot of what orienteering is about? Or, as I think we should do, do we want to keep orienteering as it is, please spectators as is already being done, and just enjoy the sport for yourselves?

There is no need to change the WOC. The arguments for change have no logic, it is quite stupid

By: LQ

LQ — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 16:50:38 +0000

Quote from Samo – “I think that small nations could feel better without qualifications as some nations haven’t seen Final for almost 20 years”

But it is not a final without qualifications. It is just a race that will mean nothing as their name gets lost in the middle of a long list. This is no achievement