Foot orienteering (usually referred to as simply Orienteering or FootO for short) is the oldest formal orienteering sport, and the one with the most "starts" per year.[citation needed] Usually, a FootO is a timed race in which participants start at staggered intervals, are individually timed, and are expected to perform all navigation on their own. The control points are shown on the orienteering map and must be visited in the specified order. Standings are determined first by successful completion of the course, then by shortest time on course.
The history of orienteering began in the late 19th century in Sweden. The actual term "orienteering" was first used in 1886 and meant the crossing of unknown land with the aid of a map and a compass.[1] The first orienteering competition open to the public was held in Norway in 1897.[1] Notable dates for member nations of the IOF are shown below.
The first Swedish national body was formed in 1935,[3] [or1936[2]] to co-ordinate both foot and ski orienteering. In 1938 SOFT took over the sport for all foot races.[2][3]
The official formats in the World Orienteering Championships,[8] which is followed by most regional and national championships, include the following:
Long distance
The long distance competition, previously called the classic distance competition, is the longest and toughest individual competition. Long competitions are held in forest, with expected winning time of 90–100 minutes, in physically demanding terrain with large-scale route choices and varying scale of technical difficulties.
Middle distance
The middle distance competition is a relatively shorter race held in forest, with expected winning time of 30–35 minutes in technically complex terrain. (In 2003, the middle distance replaced a previous format called short distance competition where the expected winning time was 20-25 minutes.)
Sprint
Sprint competitions are high-speed competitions held in urban areas, which are technically easy but with difficult route choices. The expected winning time is 12–15 minutes.
Relay
The relay, composed of teams of 3, is a mass start event where different runners are separated by means of gaffling. The results are directly determined at the finish line.
Sprint relay
The sprint relay is run by teams of 4, where the first and the last must be women, in urban areas with mass start and gaffling. It is an exciting and television-friendly event where the runners compete head-to-head at a high-speed.
Knock-Out Sprint
Knock-Out sprint (KO-Sprint) is the newest form urban orienteering to be added to international competition. It consists of a short qualifier race of around 10–12 minutes to determine the seeding for a subsequent series of very short mass start elimination races of around 6–8 minutes. These elimination races normally consist of six runner with the top two or three progressing, and can contain gaffling, loops, or runner's choice selection. Similar to the sprint relay, it is high paced and television friendly, with the elimination rounds happening quickly one after another.
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