WOC 99

[plain lazy]

Surely there will be a demand for live TV in the Scandinavian countries, or at least live Internet streaming as there was in 2011?

I don't see why we can't try and offer international TV companies the opportunity to broadcast the event live if there is interest.

[Mrs H]

Make sure you book Per Forsberg nice and early - did n't think that Goggi bloke was quite up to the job

[andy]

Make sure you book Per Forsberg nice and early - did n't think that Goggi bloke was quite up to the job

I'd love to see some UK based commentating talent coming through, there are a few people out there with the skills. A week of commentating can be a fairly lucrative deal if you have proven yourself to be capable.

[Big Jon]

The WOC 99 commentating team did OK - why not approach some of them?

[graeme]

I'm intriged why the WOC roles are volunteer ones?

Because many of the roles required at WOC are cool things to do/have done. It makes sense to give volunteers first shout at doing jobs they *want* to do, then spend cash on jobs nobody wants to do. There are large numbers of competent orienteers in all these areas, if they can make the time.

Other roles are so desirable we should have an open competition to see who gets them on an unpaid basis. Obviously running on the team is one, course planning probably another and maybe commentatingtoo. Wouldn't it be fun to see our best commentators battle it out across two years of major events to win the right to commentate WOC - quite apart from driving up domestic standards.

[Big Jon]

Graeme - I like the idea of a commentary face off - I'll happily act as a judge at any event I'm attending that has the competing commentators!

[Knee Deep Mud!]

If you're going to have live TV, you need to ensure that the finish line is wide enough. At WOC99, the TV crews there had been given an 'interview area' about 20m behind the finish. In practice this was in the wrong place. A significant number of the runners keeled over immediately having crossed the finish line, and the Swedish (?) TV crew there wouldn't stay where the organisers had decided to put them, and instead insisted on doing their interviews on the spot. This completely blocked the finish line on a number of occasions. Trying to get people to move out of the way of the incoming runners is not an easy task when they are in the middle of an interview!

Of course, Yvette was on such a high from winning that she didn't slow down until she was miles past the finish line and the TV crew!

[Deaf Old Gorilla]

Sorry for not replying sooner - I don't look here very often.

I did the IT at WOC 99 as Tatty said somewhere up the thread - I've not moved on 1000 times since then - I'm still doing results at events very regularly.

And no, there was no clash with the people doing IT at the Scottish 6 Days (which were interspersed with the WOC events and which I still managed to run). The two were separate organisations with their own systems, databases and even different punching systems (WOC was using Emit, Scottish 6-Days were using SI for the first time at a large event in the UK).

As well as the WOC 99 we also did a number of test and warm-up events in the run-up to the main event, including the World Cup in '98 and JIRC '99 (it was the only relay of the right size we could find).

[graeme]

It seems routine now, but what a remarkable achievement it was, getting the two e-punching events running successfully at WOC99. And there were good reasons for using different system (see "A few surplus maps": on sale at the JK!)

But you highlight two things which we really should do better now. Two independent teams, means a whole bunch of volunteers had to be found to fetch the emit controls out of the forest, and then another bunch of volunteers to put the SI controls into the forest. Totally unnecessary.

There were over 5000 people at the 6-day. With the WOC races interspersed attendance at WOC never troubled 1000, except the short race when both events were simultaneous (and who could forget the atmosphere there, when Yvette took the gold). Otherwise, that's 4000 potential spectators lost to WOC. In 1999 we might have hoped people would come just to watch, but now we know that most wont. Will we make that mistake again?

Races could easily be simultaneous. I don't know what areas are planned for WOC, but in the embargoed area Docharn & Deishar is large enough to support two separate middle events sharing an assembly. Similarly Inshriach for long. As was Plodda/Guisachan.

After 1999 we had a great legacy of quality maps and a memory of a superb event. But we also had a lot of volunteer burn out, and the divide between "elites" and "punters" was simply reinforced by the event separation. We wont let that happen again, will we?

[andy]

We wont let that happen again, will we?

Um, surely the main thing about spectator races is racing in the same area that a world champs was just decided in? Can't see it happening any other way.

[Spookster]

After 1999 we had a great legacy of quality maps and a memory of a superb event. But we also had a lot of volunteer burn out, and the divide between "elites" and "punters" was simply reinforced by the event separation. We wont let that happen again, will we?

The British Orienteering Annual Report 2011 was published today. Here's what it says about WOC 2015:

British Orienteering’s bid to hold the World Orienteering Championships 2015 was successful and preparations are now under way to stage the event. The event will be run in parallel with the bi-annual Scottish 6 Days and will be based around Inverness, Scotland. One of the strengths of the bid was the strong partnership that was formed between orienteering organisations, government agencies and the local community. It will be this partnership which helps to deliver a successful event.

Although the 6-days and WOC will be separate events, the more we can benefit from synergies between the two the better. No doubt there are lessons to learn from WOC 99, but also we need to recognise that WOC now is very different from WOC then.

[Snail]

Two independent teams, means a whole bunch of volunteers had to be found to fetch the emit controls out of the forest, and then another bunch of volunteers to put the SI controls into the forest. Totally unnecessary

Agree, but this aspect aside the organisational requirements were, and possibly stiill are, rather different.

One is a small scale (in numbers) event that may require significant involvement in things like team management / accommodation, team briefings, transport, restricted access warm-up/pre-start areas, possibly issue and management of e-cards, press/media, ceremonies, etc. But possibly relatively small numbers of on-site manpower.

The other is a large scale event regarding significant teams (logistics / start / finish / car-parking / enquires / etc) but where the competitors themselves are largely self-reliant.

It's a bit like the difference between the elite and mass races at any large road race. They take place at the same time and in the same arena, but the organisational aspects - whilst needing co-ordination - are rather different.

[graeme]

Andrew Dalgleish has been appointed as the WOC 2015 ICT Director. Andrew has a professional ICT background and a considerable track record in delivering ICT at major events most notably the 2010 PWT event in Perth and recent Scottish 6 Day events. Andrew is a member of Edinburgh Southern Orienteering Club. He said of the WOC2015: I am especially keen to see not just a great WOC but a really great Scottish 6 Days running alongside WOC, working together, sharing resources and expertise and putting on a superb week of orienteering in Scotland in 2015.

[SIman]

Great news. Good luck, Andrew!