World Cup - World Schmuck

[mharky]

Over the 5 year period from 2006-2010 there will have been 55 individual World Cup races.

Every year WOC is included, every even year the Europeans are inlcuded. A total of 24 races. These events are obviously awarded by the IOF with (compulsary?) different host nations every years.

That leaves 31 World Cup races. Here is how they are distributed around the World:

Switzerland: 8
Sweden: 7
Norway: 6
France: 5
Finland: 4
Denmark: 1

It's a small World, isn't it?

[Big Jon]

When the IOF in their wisdom decided that the World Cup was past it and WOC every two years was too expensive they decided to replace it with a .... wait for..... World Cup and WOC every year. Work that one out if you can! It was obvious that the World Cup would only go to the biggest nations - ie Scandinavia. Switzerland has oodles of sponsorship just now so could afford to put a few on - not too sure about France.
The World Cup has become a meaningless joke unless you are a Scandinavian orienteer, the IOF has destroyed what was a great series of races that helped spread elite orienteering round the world and replaced it with a greater Scandinavian championships.

What a bunch of tossers!

[graeme]

It was obvious when WOC became annual that the World Cup was past its sell by date.
Like another UK competition being discussed on another thread...
England: 9
Scotland: 0
Wales: 0
NI: 0

[Duncan]

If anyone is wondering how much bigger the world was before WOC and World Cup were every year (I was), see here. Lots of exciting places, as you say, like Aus, NZ, Hong Kong, Japan, USA, Canada, GBR, IRL, Ukraine, Portugal, Poland

[Gross]

I remember one Dr Palmer sitting in a hot tub looking out over snow covered Mt Fuji in Japan saying..... it's 'pay back time'

[DJM]

Things are never as black and white as some believe ...

Firstly, the World Cup was beginning to struggle a few years ago. It was difficult to find organisers and some events had about as much atmosphere as an old-style Badge Event. For an event which has twin aims - primarily of course for the athletes to gain international experience, but also to act as a showcase for orienteering on the world stage - it was failing (a) to attract as many teams/runners as before, and (b) to attract the sponsors and media attention needed to develop orienteering as a truly global sport.

Secondly, Federations voted to change WOC to become an annual event, the first of the "extra" WOCs starting in 2004. This put extra pressure on the World Cup and a decision to end the old format seemed inevitable, and so the "new" World Cup was born.

It had to be attractive both to runners and the media and, in order to achieve these, World Cup races were attached to major events where the top runners already competed - at least for the first few years whilst the format was being developed. Hence the preponderence of Scandinavian, French and Swiss hosts.

This was exactly the published intention when the World Cup was launched in 2007 so no one should be surprised that this is what's happening now. It was also the published intention that, once the World Cup had become established, hosts outside Europe would be encouraged to apply and the IOF is now actively seeking such a host for 2011.

So, never fear, the programme should be very different from that of today in a few years' time.

We "tossers" who work for the IOF have a pretty tough task in planning a World Cup programme within all the current constraints, not least of which is difficulty in finding applicants outside the top few.

The current competition is attracting more and more competitors and, last year, had more runners with World Cup points than for any other year this decade. It is by no means a meaningless joke ...

[Homer]

So what chance of a World Cup Race attached to the JK?

[Kitch]

It is by no means ... meaningless

off the top of their head,
does anyone know the current holders ?

[andypat]

Options Upload attachment

Can I have a guess at Switzerland?

[EddieH]

Anne Margarette Hausken is one . My guess is Daniel Hubman for the other, but I don't know.

[guessed]

http://www.6prog.org/iof/wc_home$.asp?WCYear=2008

[mharky]

...to act as a showcase for orienteering on the world stage...

So reducing the World Cup to what might be the 6 biggest O-populations in oreinteering is the solution. Scandinavia doesn't need the World Cup, orienteering is huge there. It's countries like the Baltic nations a few years ago and the Balkan nations now, up and coming nations.

to develop orienteering as a truly global sport

It's not going to happen. It will never be a global sport. Can't you just accept this? Why do we have to be global, why do we have to be in the olympics? Can't the IOF just take care of the nations which actually want to do orienteering? I think it's great what has happened in China, they are better than our Women now,, but Panama? Mozambique? Really?

It was difficult to find organisers... and to attract the sponsors

Might this have something to do with the IOF demanding €7,000 per race... If it wasn't for that I'm sure that nearly all the smaller nations could put on a WC race to the required standards.

Federations voted to change WOC to become an annual event

I had just moved up into the senior squad when all this was happening. I remember us having team meetings about it and no a single athlete was pleased about the outcome. Infact, the general consensus was the the IOF was doing this as a way to make money and wasn't particuarly bothered about the athletes at all.

We "tossers" who work for the IOF have a pretty tough task in planning a World Cup programme within all the current constraints, not least of which is difficulty in finding applicants outside the top few.

But you don't find applicants outside the top few, there must be some reason for people not applying. Oh, the 7 grand. And I would hardly call awarding the World Cup to the O-fest, O-ringen and Post Finance races every year a "tough task.

For the 2010 season I was excitied to see a World Cup tour, 4 races in 4 capital citties in abuot 10 days... Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Olso; Oh... It still sounds like a really good set of races, but still in Scandi, again.

It is by no means a meaningless joke ...

Maybe not for what you see it as; income. But speaking as an athlete, I think it's been a piss-take the last few years.

One of the most competative races of 2008 wasn't in the World Cup. It was the Open Hungarian Champs. The year before WOC in WOC terrain, it was always going to be massive. And it was. http://diosgyoritc.hu/versenyek/oneb2008/oneb2008_donto_eredmeny.html.

I look forward to the World Cup becoming a World Cup again...

[funnyrunner]

Fully agree with mharky on this one.
In the current format there will not be world cup races outside of europe. I'd be suprised if there are any bids for 2011 outside of europe. As none of the top runners will attend with WOC being every year. Unlike 2000, 1994 etc when it went round the world with good runners.

The IOF member countries which voted for WOC every year were essentially the europeon ones, not the "world" ones, they voted against.

Return WOC to every year!
Or alternativly rename the world cup the european cup....

[Patrick]

Excellent rant Mharky...I totally agree.

Secondly, Federations voted to change WOC to become an annual event, the first of the "extra" WOCs starting in 2004. This put extra pressure on the World Cup and a decision to end the old format seemed inevitable, and so the "new" World Cup was born.

So change WOC back to being once every two years then. Oh, sorry - that would mean the IOF losing out on all those lovely fees the WOC hosts have to pay.

I remember seeing Steve Hale getting a top 10 place in the World Cup race at the Trossachs in 1988 (I think that was the first UK male top 10 result in a global level race). It was a genuinely inspirational moment for me, and I suspect many other British juniors. How many athletes in Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean countries, or in Oz are going to miss out on that kind of inspiration under the Scandi/Swiss Cup model?

...some events had about as much atmosphere as an old-style Badge Event.

You could probably have said the same about the Trossachs race, but that didn't stop it being a great event. The IOF needs to work out what it wants. It harps on about generating media interest when its website looks a decade out of date. It appears to crave TV coverage while seemingly ignoring the potential of internet streaming and highlights packages. All the innovation is coming from the likes of WorldofO and the Jukola and Tiomila ogranisers. If the IOF is serious about the media it should have a dedicated media team to set up and manage coverage of all WOC, World Cup and JWOC events, offering live streaming for orienteering fans and generating highlights packages to sell to broadcasters. OK, it would cost a bit, but then the organisers would be getting something useful for their money.

Anyway, I guess we'll see how happy everyone is with the World Cup setup when the results of the IOF Major Events survey are published...

Cheers,

Patrick