It's been over seven months, but for
Bosse Sandström it looks like it was still yesterday. Main figure of
the 2016 World Trail Orienteering Championships, he was the course
setter of four great days of the best and most challenging
Orienteering. This is part of the memories he shares today to the
Portuguese Orienteering Blog. But there's more!
I would start by asking you to
introduce yourself. Who is Bosse Sandström?
Bosse Sandtröm (B. S.) - I'm 56
years old, born, raised and live near Lysekil, on the west coast of
Sweden. I work in a metallurgic factory and as a firefighter. I'm
divorced and I have four sons. My hobbies are orienteering,
photography and travelling, and to be able to combine all of my
hobbies at once is really nice.
You were the course setter of the
last World Trail Orienteering Championships, held in Strömstad,
Sweden. What came to mind when you first received the invitation to
play such an important role? How hard was it to say yes?
B. S. - I didn't hesitate one
second. I saw it as an honour to be able to play such an important
role.
What was the most difficult part of
the course planner's job?
B. S. - I was the sole course
planner and, to be honest, it was a little bit too much
responsibility and it felt like a great pressure on my shoulders. But
I had good help from my staff, especially Knut Ovesen, who
volunteered as my mentor.
If you had the chance to go back,
would you do anything differently?
B. S. - I probably wouldn't have
been course planner for all competitions, because the last year
before WTOC I felt as though I had three jobs. Every free weekend was
dedicated to planning and I also took some days off work to be able
to do a good job with the courses. On the other hand, I must admit
I'm a little bit of a control freak, so I would probably have nosed
in their work anyway… (laughs). Seriously, I am very happy with my
work, and to be able to present the venues, Saltö and Tolvmanstegen,
was very satisfying. And with the TempO competition, I deliberately
made the controls easier than previous WTOCs, to speed up the
answering time, making competitors make mistakes when I made some
controls a little bit trickier. As I understand, the competitors
appreciated that.
Could you mention one or two of the
strongest moments of the Championships from the course planner´s
point of view?
B. S. - Some words from Jana Kostova moved me. She said, after
the competition at Saltö, “On this course I did not feel I had any
disadvantage, sitting in a wheelchair”.
Is there any organizational issue in
a TrailO competition which always runs on the edge of a knife, that's
quite easy to escape your control?
B. S. - It's very important to
bring a chair when you plan controls, to get the view of wheelchair
users, and avoid any disadvantages for them. Fair play is very
important in our sport. It's better to void a nice control if it's
not solvable for wheelchair users.
You've been part of the strong start
field in Lipica, a few days ago, for the Unofficial European Cup in
Trail Orienteering 2017's kick off. How “free” did you feel
there, without WTOC's concerns?
B. S. - As soon as WTOC was
over, I put it behind me, so I could enjoy every competition after
that very much. And since the trip to Lipica was a small vacation for
me, I appreciated the Vilenica cave and I also took a trip to Venice.
Are you happy with your performance
at Lipica TrailO? Did you like the courses and the maps?
B. S. - Both yes and no. I know
I'm a little bit slow in TempO and, as I didn't compete so much in
2016 (for obvious reasons), I was a little bit rusty. But only three
wrong answers and placing 25th was a little surprise. But four wrong
answers on the PreO competition on Sunday was at least two too many.
The maps and courses were of good quality, but courses were tricky,
in a good way.
How beautiful can Trail Orienteering
be?
B. S. - TrailO is a relatively
small sport, and, if you compete a lot, you get a lot of friends from
different countries, which is very nice. And to be able to solve a
tricky course and not fall into the course planner's pitfalls is a
very good feeling. Too bad this does not happen too often for me.
Is Trail Orienteering going in the
right direction? If you had the power, would you change anything?
B. S. - Yes, I think so. The
maps are getting better, and we had, at least in Sweden, in recent
years many education possibilities for course planners, so there will
also be better courses. And the new Relay format is a good
continuation for TrailO.
Would you like to share your goals
for the season?
B. S. - As I'll compete more in
2017 than I did in 2016, I hope to climb up the Swedish rankings. I
also plan to compete in all ECTO competitions this year. I am also
planning for our district's Championships in June, using one of the
WTOC venues. And since I'm allowed to be coach again for the Swedish
national team - despite the fact that Swedes didn't take any medals
in Croatia, where I was coach, and last year when I wasn't able to be
coach, Sweden took six gold, three silver and two bronze, in ETOC and
WTOC -, I will try to lead my team to more medals.
Do you have any tips or advice to
the WTOC 2017 Lithuanian organizers?
B. S. - I'm sure
that they have everything under control by now, only four months
before competition, but one thing I experienced was how good it is to
have fine relationships with landowners. The attendant of reservation
on Saltö was very helpful both before and during competition.
If, hypothetically, your Federation
invited you to be the course planner of the next Swedish European or
World Trail Orienteering Championships, would you accept?
B. S. - No, and for two reasons.
It was a little bit too much work, and since my district federation
is small, I feel we can’t summon marshals once again for such a big
competition.
Joaquim Margarido
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