News
News
Latest news
British Orienteering is proud to reaffirm our commitment to clean sport
by backing UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD’s) Clean Sport Week campaign from 13 - 17 May.
Clean Sport Week is UKAD’s national awareness week championing clean sport,
education and anti-doping initiatives with sports across the UK.
This year’s Clean Sport Week theme is “Journey to the Podium”. Throughout the
week, UKAD will be showcasing the importance of the clean sport journey through the
lens of athletes and the elite sport community. Anti-doping should be a key part of
every athlete and support personnel’s journey – it should never be an afterthought.
Clean sport is an essential part of our athletes’ journeys to the podium / in professional
sport. It takes a lifetime of work, commitment and a network of support to help athletes
perform at the very top. This effort can be taken away in a moment by doping.
Creating a culture of clean sport is essential for the health and welfare of our athletes
and the integrity of Orienteering.
We all have a responsibility to keep sport clean, to raise awareness of anti-doping and
to celebrate the successes of athletes - through hard work, determination and by
competing clean.
We encourage anyone in our sporting community that would like to learn more about
anti-doping to sign up to UKAD’s Clean Sport Hub where there are free education
courses for athletes, students, coaches and practitioners.
Follow @ukantidoping on social media to see a range of educational and exciting
content throughout the week. To find out more about UKAD’s Clean Sport Week
initiative click here.
For anyone who works in sport, don’t miss UKAD’s Clean Sport Week event on
Tuesday 14 March, taking place on the Loughborough University campus. The event
will focus on the para-athlete’s journey to the podium. You can register your interest in
attending here.
Clean Sport Week
British Orienteering is delighted to announce the GBR team selected to race at the World University Orienteering Championships.
The World University Orienteering Championships (WUOC) are held every two years, with the 2024 GBR team competing in Bankso, Bulgaria from 1 to 5 August.
British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) selects and enters the team, working in partnership with British Orienteering. The team announcement can be found on the BUCS website.
Women's Team:
Rachel Brown (University of Edinburgh)
Fiona Bunn (University of Edinburgh)
Eilidh Campbell (University of Edinburgh)
Isobel Howard (University of Edinburgh)
Niamh Hunter (University of Edinburgh)
Laura King (Uppsala University)
Men's Team:
Jim Bailey (University of Edinburgh)
David Bunn (University of Edinburgh)
Euan Tryner (University of Edinburgh)
Peter Molloy (University of Cambridge)
Freddie Carcas (Boise State University)
Eddie Narbett (Bradley University)
The Sprint World Orienteering Championships 2024 (WOC 2024), which will take place in Edinburgh from 12-16 July 2024, is delighted to announce Heart Research UK’s Heart of Scotland Appeal as the Official Charity Partner of the event.
The Heart of Scotland Appeal works towards research and community projects in Scotland aimed at reducing the number of people affected by heart diseases. Currently 48 people a day die from cardiovascular disease in Scotland.
The partnership with WOC 2024 aims to raise awareness of the risks of heart diseases amongst the orienteering community, promoting heart health through exercise. The partnership will also help raise funds and awareness for the Heart of Scotland appeal, with all money raised distributed to research projects across Scotland.
The partnership will also be looking to explore opportunities for people to fundraise and take part in the WOC Tour – the amateur races running during WOC 2024. Additionally, various social media collaborations and storytelling activities will help raise awareness of the great work the charity do, in the build up to and during the World Championships in July.
“Heart Research UK’s Heart of Scotland Appeal are delighted to be the official charity partner of the World Orienteering Championships 2024 in Edinburgh. Heart diseases are unfortunately prevalent in Scotland; however, we know that orienteering is a great form of cardiovascular exercise that works out both your heart and your mind,” said Mary Campbell, Director of Income Generation at Heart Research UK.
“Getting outside and trying orienteering, whether in the Scottish countryside or your local town or city, can really benefit both your aerobic and anaerobic fitness, both of which are key to increasing your heart’s strength, reducing your blood pressure, and resting heart rate. We are dedicated to doing all we can to raise awareness of the impact of heart diseases on families up and down the country. The money raised through this partnership will be spent right here in Scotland on lifesaving medical research into the prevention, treatment and cure of heart diseases.”
WOC 2024 Event Director Andy Mitchelmore said of the partnership: “Orienteering is a great form of exercise for all ages and the perfect sport for helping heart health. This is why we felt that a partnership with Heart Research UK’s Heart of Scotland Appeal was such a great fit with WOC 2024 and why we are delighted to have them on board as our Official Charity Partner.”
“We hope we can work together to raise awareness about the work they do in Scotland and help raise funds to support their projects across Scotland. We know the orienteering community will get behind the charity and in July Edinburgh will welcome the orienteering community from around the world, whilst at the same time raising funds for this fantastic cause.”
WOC 2024 is organised by Scottish 6 Days Orienteering in conjunction with Scottish Orienteering, British Orienteering and the International Orienteering Federation, with primary event partners EventScotland, part of VisitScotland’s Events Directorate, and The City of Edinburgh Council.
To find out more about WOC 2024 visit the official website. Sign up to the WOC Tour here, and for Heart Research UK’s Heart of Scotland Appeal visit their website.
Kirsten Maxwell and Mairi Eades of Team GB with the Heart Research UK mascot
Place of Residence: Shipley, Yorkshire
Experience: When did you start/ How did you get into Orienteering?
“I started when I was a kid going with my mum and dad on the weekends. When I was around 15 or so I decided that I wanted to take it more seriously and began training with a bit more intent.”
Clubs: What orienteering clubs have you been part of?
“I run for Octavian Droobers and Lidingö”
Coach:
Oli Johnson (South Yorkshire Orienteers)
Training Routine:
“I try to make my training emphasise key sessions each week. This season it has focused on quality speed sessions and orienteering sessions - especially sprint. As a result, my overall mileage has been lower than in recent years when I've tried to race everything, so it's been important to remind myself what I am aiming for and that specifically has been important. Physically I'm self-coached though so I'm always learning and enjoy trying out new things in training and following the World Orienteering Championships I'm looking forward to pursuing some new goals and approaches.”
Race Routine/habits:
“It's taken me a long time to find a routine that works for me. Anyone who's known me for a while knows that I used to really stress myself out about doing everything perfectly to a routine around races, meaning I was tense and probably not a lot of fun to be around. For a variety of reasons, I've really changed my approach to trying to feel as relaxed as possible before a race, regardless of the level or perceived pressure, and try to focus on and remember the reason I'm there. Obviously, I want to do as well as possible, but ultimately, I really enjoy racing competitively and orienteering in cool terrain, and thinking about this lets me focus a lot more on my own technique and race. I also think it's important to contextualise your own race, especially internationally, and not be too hard on yourself when you're racing professional athletes or people who might be 5 or 10 years older and more experienced. A good habit I've found is that if I can finish a race and think I'm happy with it as soon as I cross the line, even before I've downloaded, then that's a good outcome.”
Favourite terrain/venue/event in UK/World:
“I really enjoy sand dune orienteering and technical campus sprints.”
Favourite Food:
“Thai food, though I'm really not fussy as long as it's vegetarian and doesn't have mushrooms in it!”
Other Hobbies:
“I'm currently converting a van into a campervan which is really fun!”
Inspirations:
“I think it's a really good time to take inspiration from the current GB sprint squad. There are so many great runners competing together and everyone has a really good team attitude which means we can all really celebrate each other's successes. I think seeing how fast Kris and Ralph are running and the results Meg is putting out there is really inspiring at the moment. Having Oli coaching me is also a big source of inspiration given how successful he was for so many years.”
What advice would you give to a younger version of yourself?
“Enjoy it! Everyone gets told this as a junior but it's really hard to actually listen to and act on it when there is a lot of focus on EYOC/JWOC only. As soon as you're out of that bubble, you realise how many incredible opportunities orienteering can give you so the earlier you can realise the things this sport can let you do and focus on those the better.”
British Orienteering wishes you all the very best Nathan with your final preparations.
------
Ahead of the World Orienteering Championships 2022 in Denmark, British Orienteering is posting interviews of the GB athletes selected to compete so that all members can get to know the GB team. Please keep an eye out for these interviews which will be posted on the British Orienteering website this week, and follow all the action live here throughout the World Orienteering Championships which start with the Sprint Relay on Sunday 26 June!
Good Luck to the British Team
Scholes Mill, Old Coach Road, Tansley, Matlock, DE4 5FY
Tel: 01629 583037, Email: info@britishorienteering.org.uk
Registered in England & Wales No:1606472