Sunday morning was the first race of the 2019 Junior World Orienteering Championships, a sprint race in Aarhus, Denmark. The weather was set fair and the team felt well prepared following their preparation and the model event the day before.
In what was a superbly planned and tricky sprint race, Grace Molloy kept her head, after a challenging first control, to win the first Junior Women’s medal since 2004, when Alison O'Neil also won bronze in Poland.
Grace’s medal result was backed up by a top 10 from Fiona Bunn, who put in top splits to the first and third radio controls and second fastest to the second, before a mistake dropped her down to a joint 9th finish. The top British male result came from Eddie Narbett, who finished 27th, just 50 seconds back from the winner, highlighting how tight both the men's and women's fields are in the sprint distance.
The British team were cheered on by a large cohort of British supporters watching from a bank overlooking the run in and spectator control. The organisation and execution of the event were fantastic, a great experience for both competitors and spectators.
The Womens race was won by Eline Gemperle of Switzerland and the Mens won by Australian Aston Key. Results for the British team
Position |
Name |
Time |
Difference from Winner |
3 |
Grace Molloy |
12:32 (3) |
+00:14 |
9 |
Fiona Bunn |
12:52 (9) |
+00:34 |
27 |
Eddie Narbett |
13:10 (27) |
+00:50 |
33 |
Eilidh Campbell |
13:38 (33) |
+01:20 |
35 |
Alastair Thomas |
13:27 (35) |
+01:07 |
41 |
Laura King |
13:45 (41) |
+01:27 |
63 |
Peter Molloy |
13:49 (63) |
+01:29 |
66 |
Freddie Carcas |
13:54 (66) |
+01:34 |
66 |
Zac Hudd |
13:54 (66) |
+01:34 |
83 |
Megan Keith |
14:52 (83) |
+02:34 |
91 |
Niamh Hunter |
15:08 (91) |
+02:50 |
- |
Finlay Todd |
mp |
|
Full results are available here.
The team now switch into recovery mode and start preparation for the Long race tomorrow morning before a rest day on Tuesday.