Individual/Classic/Long Distance
This event was called "Individual" from 1966 to 1989 and "Classic distance" from 1991 to 2001. Since 2003 it is called "Long distance".
This is a list of medalists from the World Orienteering Championships in men's orienteering. [1] [2]
This event was called "Individual" from 1966 to 1989 and "Classic distance" from 1991 to 2001. Since 2003 it is called "Long distance".
This event was first held in 1991. The format was changed and renamed "Middle Distance" in 2003 with the introduction of the Sprint discipline.
This event was first held in 2001.
This event was first held in 2022.
| Year | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Length and controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 |  Matthias Kyburz |  August Mollén | Jonatan Gustafsson | 2.4 km, 11 controls |
| 2024 | Riccardo Rancan |  Jørgen Baklid | Jonatan Gustafsson |
2009 Note: ^ In the 3rd leg Martin Johansson (Sweden) was in the lead when he suffered a serious injury; Thierry Gueorgiou (France), Anders Nordberg (Norway), and Michal Smola (Czech Republic) gave up their lead positions and rescued him. Interpretation of International Orienteering Federation (IOF) competition rules was at issue: rule 26.13 states "The organiser must void a competition if at any point it becomes clear that circumstances have arisen which make the competition unfair or dangerous for the competitors." After much deliberation on whether or not to void the relay, the organizers declared that it stood. [3] [4]
Men's orienteering. Table updated after the 2024 World Orienteering Championships. Does not include mixed events.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway | 42 | 24 | 28 | 94 |
| 2 | Sweden | 23 | 24 | 28 | 75 |
| 3 | Switzerland | 21 | 29 | 21 | 71 |
| 4 |  France | 14 | 7 | 10 | 31 |
| 5 |  Russia (1993–present) | 8 | 7 | 3 | 18 |
| 6 |  Finland | 6 | 23 | 13 | 42 |
| 7 |  Denmark | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| 8 |  Great Britain | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 9 |  Ukraine | 1 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| 10 |  Czech Republic (1993–present) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| 11 | Czechoslovakia (1966–91) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 12 |  Latvia | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 13 |  New Zealand | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 |  Austria | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Belgium | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Hungary | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Italy | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Soviet Union (1966–91) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (18 entries) | 123 | 123 | 124 | 370 | |
Updated to May 2024. Including mixed events.
| Rank | Athlete | Country | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thierry Gueorgiou | France | 2003 | 2017 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 23 |
| 2 | Olav Lundanes | Norway | 2010 | 2019 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 17 |
| 3 | Daniel Hubmann | Switzerland | 2005 | 2019 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 28 |
| 4 | Matthias Kyburz | Switzerland | 2012 | 2023 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
| 5 | Øyvin Thon | Norway | 1979 | 1989 | 7 | 1 | - | 8 |
| 6 | Andrey Khramov | Russia | 2005 | 2015 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 13 |
| 7 | Gustav Bergman | Sweden | 2013 | 2023 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 8 |
| 8 | Petter Thoresen | Norway | 1989 | 1997 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| 9 | Valentin Novikov | Russia | 2004 | 2013 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 11 |
| 10 | Bjørnar Valstad | Norway | 1991 | 2004 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
Updated to May 2024. Including mixed events.
| Country | Athlete | From | To | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | Thierry Gueorgiou | 2003 | 2017 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 23 |
| Norway | Olav Lundanes | 2010 | 2019 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 17 |
| Switzerland | Daniel Hubmann | 2005 | 2019 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 28 |
| Russia | Andrey Khramov | 2005 | 2015 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 10 |
| Sweden | Gustav Bergman | 2012 | 2023 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 14 |
| Denmark | Søren Bobach | 2014 | 2015 | 3 | 1 | - | 4 |
| Finland | Jani Lakanen | 1999 | 2006 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 8 |
| United Kingdom | Jamie Stevenson | 2003 | 2008 | 2 | - | 2 | 4 |
| Ukraine | Yuri Omeltchenko | 1995 | 2004 | 1 | 2 | - | 3 |
| Latvia | Edgars Bertuks* | 2012 | 2013 | 1 | - | 2 | 3 |
| Czech Republic | Tomáš Dlabaja & Jan Procházka & Jan Šedivý (by the gold first ranking system) | 2012 2012 2012 | 2012 2012 2012 | 1 1 1 | - - - | - - - | 1 1 1 |
| Rudolf Ropek (by total number of medals) | 2001 | 2003 | - | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Czechoslovakia | Petr Kozak (by the gold first ranking system) | 1991 | 1991 | 1 | - | - | 1 |
| Zdenek Lenhart & Jaroslav Kačmarčík (by total number of medals) | 1970 1979 | 1979 1983 | - - | - 1 | 2 1 | 2 2 | |
| New Zealand | Tim Robertson * | 2018 | 2021 | - | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Austria | Jannis Bonek * | 2023 | 2023 | - | - | 1 | 1 |
| Belgium | Yannick Michiels * | 2022 | 2022 | - | - | 1 | 1 |
| Hungary | Zoltán Boros & János Sotér & Géza Vajda & András Hegedus | 1972 1972 1972 1972 | 1972 1972 1972 1972 | - - - - | - - - - | 1 1 1 1 | 1 1 1 1 |
| Italy | Mikhail Mamleev* | 2009 | 2009 | - | - | 1 | 1 |
| Soviet Union | Sixten Sild* | 1991 | 1991 | - | - | 1 | 1 |
An asterisk (*) marks athletes who are the only representatives of their respective countries to win a medal.