MTBO
MTBO in Russia M
oscow, with its millions of people is not a good place for a healthy life but is excellent for the virus. But life is going on here. Despite our sports school being closed we meet with children in the park nearby and make some training exercises. Also some competitions are organized. At the end of November we had the 6-days Russian MTBO Championships in Crimea. The COVID situation is not so bad in that region. Ruslan Gritsan (Russia’s outstanding elite MTBO’er) was the map and course maker. The mountain terrain was rather tough.
Ruslan Gritsan has an incredible record in MTBO. He has competed in all 17 World MTBO Championships since the first in France in 2002. In those championships he has won 7 gold, 4 silver and 5 bronze medals. The years are not slowing him either as he won the Long Distance gold medal at the most recent World Championships in Denmark in 2019 at the age of 41! Added to his World Championship medal haul is 8 European MTBO Championship and 6 World Cup medals.
Natalia Morosanova (a Russian coach)
Ruslan Gritsan with a corridor MTBO course. Ruslan on his way to the gold medal in Denmark 2019. Photo: Rainer Burman – fotoburmann.at
36 THE AUSTRALIAN ORIENTEER MARCH 2021
