Home PageNews6/17 June 201750th WMC Orienteering - Hamina (FIN) - Day 1

50th World Military Championship Orienteering 2017 – Day 1 – Opening Ceremony and Model Event

 

 

HAMINA (FIN) – The Opening Ceremony of the 50th WMC Orienteering 2017 took place yesterday June 11, in the city of Hamina, Finland. The Finnish Defense Forces will host the CISM 50th WMC Orienteering from 10 to 16 June 2017 in the town and municipality of Hamina. The Finnish Defense Force´s Chief of Education Brigadier General Jukka Sonninen has welcomed the Official CISM Representative Lieutenant-Colonel Harald Østbye, the Chiefs of Mission of the participating Nations and the competitors and wished them a successful competition. Read the full Opening Speech here.

 

 

The competition program features three events for male and female competitors: Middle distance, Long distance and Relay.

Approximately 260 military athletes and a hundred team leaders representing up to 30 countries are expected to take part in the competition. The Finnish Army Academy is responsible for the competition arrangements.

After Dragsvik in 1968, Hämeenlinna in 1976, Lahti in 1984, Säkylä in 1995 and Lappeenranta in 2005, this CISM WMC Orienteering 2017 is the sixth CISM orienteering event hosted in Finland. The Finnish Defense Forces also hosted the CISM’s World Military Skiing Championship in Sodankylä and Levi in 2014.

 

 

On Sunday, the Preliminary and Technical Meeting as well as the Model event of the WMC took place in Hamina. The participants had the opportunity to familiarize with the course and to know what to expect for the next competition days and the participants all had their comments about the Southeastern Finnish forest course.

“In my home country we have more roads but no stones. Here the green areas in the map are also much more difficult than in Germany”, declared OR4 Daniel Steiger, who is attending his 3rd WMC Orienteering.

 

 

“Compared to the courses in USA, marshes and swamps are softer here. This is also flatter than I am used to. Anyway I’m here to have fun and to interact with the athletes from different nations”, declared Jordan Laughlin (Cpt) from the US Army.

“I like this course and I have some kind of home-advantage because my girlfriend’s home is only seven kilometers away from here”, revealed Estonian CPL Timo Sild, one of the medal favorites in the competition.

 

 

Seven Finnish athletes are participating in this World Military Championship Orienteering. Sergeants Santeri Silvennoinen and Aki Saari and LCpl Anton Kuukka described the terrain as a typical course in southern Finland: “Compared to some countries we have a clear home advantage, but some experienced orienteers from top-nations have been running even more than us on those kind of courses”, explained the young Finns. “We have a strong team and we have chances to take a medal in all the distances!”

 

 

 

For the start lists, online results, official results, GPS Tracking and route gadget of the middle distance competition that is taking place today in Keskimatka, check https://www.vehkalahdenveikot.fi/wmoc2017/)

For more information regarding the 50th WMC Orienteering that is currently taking place in the city of Hamina, Finland, from 10 to 16 June, check the OC Website: http://puolustusvoimat.fi/en/web/sotilasliikunta/wmoc2017 or their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/puolustus/!

The official hashtag of the 50th WMC Orienteering 2017 is #50wmoc2017

 

(Source: CISM Media and Communication Department)

(Source: WMOC OC  http://puolustusvoimat.fi/en/web/sotilasliikunta/wmoc2017)

(Pictures: Maxime Morlet, CISM Media and Communication Assistant)

 

SEARCH CISM