AUSSIES OVERSEAS
WORLD ORIENTEERING CHAMPS – SWEDEN
World Orienteering Championships 2004 – The Inside Story Paul Liggins stayed with the Australian team in Västerås, Sweden. Here are exclusive extracts from his diary…
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USTRALIA doesn’t have a pre-WOC training camp – half the team lives in Scandinavia and Natasha Key is the only one who hadn’t been in Europe training and racing for at least 3 months beforehand. At the opening parade in the old town square Natasha competes in the WOC public Sprint race and finishes an encouraging 3rd in W21.
Long-Distance Qualification As the heats unfold there are few surprises. Leading positions are dominated by Scandinavians. Local favourite Karolina A Höjsgaard serves a warning, winning her heat by more than 2 minutes. Of the Aussies, Grant Bluett and Tom Quayle qualify easily. Grant is less than 2 mins behind the heat winner in 7th and Tom’s 4th place earns him a late start for the final. Jo Allison and Hanny Allston both have solid runs in 7th and 8th respectively, with Hanny’s all the more impressive for being her first race at a WOC.
Middle-Distance Qualification The Japanese team is excited when they feature prominently in the local newspaper coverage of the previous day’s race. This quickly fades when Grant translates the Swedish headline into English for them: “And somebody has to come last”. None of their 6 runners came close to making the final and the Orienteering world is watching closely given they’re hosting WOC in 2005. Karolina A Höjsgaard (Sweden) had a big WOC winning Gold in the Classic and Relay, and Silver in the Sprint. Photo from Skögsport cover. The first few controls prove quite testing and many runners, including some favourites, lose time early. Simone Niggli-Luder (Switz) leads all the way, winning her heat by over 2 minutes. Reigning world champion Thierry Gueorgiou (France) is favourite again and he doesn’t disappoint. He has the fastest time of the day. All the Australians hold their nerve in tricky terrain. Grant and Dave are 8th in their heats, and Troy 10th. Danielle Winslow is 13th in her first WOC race, with Jo and Natasha 10th and 9th. In fact Australia is one of only 4 teams to get all 6 runners through to the final – Sweden, Russia and Finland being the others. Troy de Haas qualifying for the Middle-Distance final. Photo: Bob Mouatt
Tom Quayle finished 13th, our best ever result in a World Championship classic race. Photo: Bob Mouatt 10 THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER DECEMBER 2004
