WMOC 2014 Brazil

[EddieH]

The IOF have given the 2014 WMOC to Brazil which should be interesting - I've never been to South America before.

Does this mean that that Italians are going to do 2013 or is this still a total mess? Does anyone know?

[Monte]

Porto Alegre is also one of the host cities for the FIFA World Cup in June/July:
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/destination/cities/city=1140/index.html

Time to start saving up.

[EddieH]

But presumably WMOC will not be June July in Southern Brazil.

[Strider]

Guessing Sept-Oct, as with WMOC in Aus in 2009?

S.

[Monte]

Date not announced but it is to be based in Porto Alegre, southern Brazil:
http://orienteering.org/world-championships-organisers-appointed/
Southern hemisphere compasses presumably required.

Brazil appear to be the only current full IOF member in South America with 5 provisional members. Is this part of IOF's long term strategy to get in the Olympics?

[Scott]

I think it's two full members in South America (Colombia being the other) and seven provisional. The Brazilian government do seem rather keen on hosting major international sporting events at the moment, so I suspect that was a factor in them bidding, but I don't really know the background - were there any other bids?

I think it's fair to say the Olympic ambitions (and ski-O is probably the most likely candidate for Olympic inclusion) have been part of the reason for the IOF's push to get more countries to all the various WOCs this year.

[Gross]

Guessing Sept-Oct, as with WMOC in Aus in 2009?

S.

Don't see what's wrong with July or August. WMOC has been hosted by Brazil twice in recent years during the summer (last time about 4 weeks ago)

[DJM]

The bid was for 16-22 August and, Gordon, don't you mean CISM and not WMOC??

[Gross]

The bid was for 16-22 August and, Gordon, don't you mean CISM and not WMOC??

CISM aka WMOC aka World Military Orienteering Championships [thought I'd catch someone on that ]

[Domhnull Mor]

As luck would have it the company I work for has a large factory just up the road from Porto Alegre. A bit of time to go yet but I feel the need to arrange a site visit Heard from the folk there that the weather is pretty much the same all the time so I guess time of year doesn't really matter. It'll undoubtedly be hot, hot, hot in any case.

[lindseyk]

Interestingly the weather forecast for this week is very similar to home at the moment - a mixture of sunny and cloudy days between 11 and 21 degrees so it might be quite a pleasant temperature for running in, unlike this year's. A first-year W55 in 2014 it's starting to look an attractive jaunt, just need to persuade my other half !

[EriOL]

Orienteering is growing rapidly in Brazil and I'm not surprised that they now apply for major events. The sport has a strong military background in the country but now they have broadened quite a bit. The biggest problem I see is a lack of good terrain (in many places comparable to southern England or something). I wouldn't expect technical or interesting orienteering in the Porto Alegre-area, but it's definitely worth the trip for many other reasons. The southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, where Porto Alegre is the capital, is the orienteering stronghold of Brazil and it was most likely chosen because they have access to the best organisers there. We'll see if it's enough to pull off a successful WMOC, but they sure seem very determined.

[Big Jon]

Are there not some sand-dunes near Porto Allegre? If so they might be technical....

[Taybank]

I was orienteering in Brazil in 2007?
Porto Alegre is not a city I would want to visit again and nothing I saw looked like good orienteering terrain - but I could be wrong.
There was some good hill/ forest terrain to the north.
A five day event we went to (near Santa Catarina) used a lot of agricultural land for "on the short side" older veteran courses (M60) while the elite went through some pretty dense forest.
It was hot in November.
I ended my stay with vicious D&S. I thought I was going to die.
Dan Marston and if I remember right, his brother Neil were both there.
Jorgen Martenson was heading their S America tour group.
I should have some maps around.

[DJM]

It'll undoubtedly be hot, hot, hot in any case

Not at all! Don't forget that it will be winter in August: the average high is 20C with the average low being 10C.

I was there a few weeks ago in June and the running conditions were just about perfect then.