AOM 2015: McLeod and Mironova, the big winners

With the dispute of the Long Distance course at Playas del Portil, this morning, the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015 is over. The absence of Daniel Hubmann allowed to open the range of candidates to the victory in the Men Elite class, with Scott Fraser winning the Long Distance stage and Alasdair McLeod to call him the victory in this edition of AOM. In the Women Elite, Svetlana Mironova showed why she was the big favourite, winning everything there was to win.

It was under a bright sun and blue sky, in a great atmosphere, that came to the end in Punta Umbría, the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015. Organized by Sun-O, city of Punta Umbría, Spanish Orienteering Federation and International Orienteering Federation, the event scored for the Spanish Foot Orienteering League 2015, offered two stages counting for the World Rankings and had the participation of eight hundred and fifty athletes, overall.

After an intense and exciting day, with two stages scoring to the World Rankings, the Long Distance course that closed the AOM 2015's competitive program promised great fight in the Men Elite class. The Swiss Daniel Hubmann announced his abandonment from the Meeting after the Middle Distance WRE yesterday and the struggle for the final victory was more fierce than ever. With the great pretenders showed to each other at the same level, it was no surprise that we could see a very hard fight, with just twelve seconds separating the top four athletes in the stage. The British Scott Fraser (TuMe) was the winner, with 1:07:00 for the 15.0 km and 37 controls of his course. The Latvian Edgars Bertuks (TuMe), with more 5 seconds, and the British Alasdsair McLeod, with more 9 seconds, closed the podium by this order. Overall, McLeod turned out to be the great beneficiary, concluding with a total time of 1:41:32 for the set of two stages (Middle Distance + Long Distance) and taking the victory in the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015 overall. Edgars Bertuks and Scott Fraser, with more 0:19 and 1:27, respectively, than the winner, concluded in the immediate positions. Sixth placed in the stage with a time of 1:09:30, the Portuguese Tiago Martins Aires (GafanhOri) would complete his presence in the AOM 2015 with an extraordinary 5th place, with more 7:10 than the winner.

In the Women Elite class, the Russian Svetlana Mironova (KooVee) was once again unstoppable, winning with a time of 58:56 for 10.9 km and 27 controls of her course. The Finnish Marttiina Joensuu (SK Pohjantähti) and Heini Saarimäki (Angelniemen Ankkuri), with more 1:36 and 1:38, respectively, concluded by this order in the immediate positions. Overall, Mironova was the winner with a total time of 1:33:49, against 1:35:40 of Saarimäki and 1:36:01 of Joensuu. The Portuguese Raquel Costa (GafanhOri), 9th ranked in the Middle Distance stage, was disqualified due to “mp”. One last word to the Portuguese Manuel Dias (Lisbon OK), who joined to the first place of yesterday's stage, a second place in the Long Distance held today, winning the M60 class.

Final Results

Men Elite

1. Alasdair McLeod (Clydeside Orienteers) 1:41:32

2. Edgars Bertuks (TuMe) 1:41:51 (+ 00:19)

3. Scott Fraser (TuMe) 1:42:59 (+ 01:27)

4. Douglas Tullie (TuMe) 1:45:17 (+ 03:45)

5. Tiago Aires (GafanhOri) 1:48:42 (+ 07:10)

6. Tomas Dlabaja (Rajamäen Rykmentti) 1:48:50 (+ 07:18)

7. Pavel Shestakov (KooVee) 1:49:45 (+ 08:13)

8. Murray Strain (Interlopers) 1:49:48 (+ 08:16)

9. Tiago Gingão Leal (GD4C) 1:51:11 (+ 09:39)

10. Miguel Reis e Silva (TuMe) 1:51:42 (+ 10:10)

Women Elite

1. Svetlana Mironova (KooVee) 1:33:49

2. Heini Saarimäki (Angelniemen Ankkuri) 1:35:40 (+ 01:51)

3. Marttiina Joensuu (SK Pohjantähti) 1:36:01 (+ 02:12)

4. Marte Narum (Nydalens SK) 1:40:14 (+ 06:25)

5. Siri Ulvestad (Nydalens SK) 1:41:00 (+ 07:11)

6. Léa Vercellotti (Maximus Madrid) 1:45:20 (+ 11:31)

7. Ruth Holmes (Southern Navigators) 1:48:35 (+ 14:46)

8. Violeta Feliciano Sanjuan (Colivenc) 1:50:27 (+ 16:38)

9. Sarah Rollins (Southern Navigators) 1:51:04 (+ 17:15)

10. Anette Juveli (Konnerud IL) 1:51:14 (+ 17:25)

Full results and further information at http://andaluciaomeeting.com/.

[Foto: Andalucia O Meeting / facebook.com/AndaluciaOMeeting]

Joaquim Margarido

AOM 2015: Hubmann and Mironova win Middle, Michiels and Mironova the best in Sprint

Daniel Hubmann and Svetlana Mironova were the big winners of the Middle Distance WRE stage, the most important of this edition of Andalucia O' Meeting, held this morning. In the afternoon, in a Sprint also counting for the World Ranking, Mironova repeated the triumph in the Women Elite, while Yannick Michiels was the winner in Men Elite.

After a particularly participated Prologue that had in the Norwegian Siri Ulvestad (Nydalens SK) and the British Murray Strain (Interlopers) the winners in the Elite classes, the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015's most expected moment arrived this morning, with the dispute of the Middle Distance WRE stage. With 6.8 km and 25 controls in the Men Elite class and 5.4 km and 21 controls in the Women Elite class, the stage was run on the map of Cartaya forest, at Punta Umbría's surroundings, having the participation of 779 athletes in the competition classes, to whom we must add close to a hundred athletes in the Open classes.

Considered as the big favourites, the Swiss Daniel Hubmann (Kristiansand OK) and the Russian Svetlana Mironova (KooVee) were the big winners. Hubmann fulfilled his course in 32:44, having dominated the race completely from the 8th control to the finish. The Latvian Edgars Bertuks (TuMe) still came to lead the race, but an error of more than one minute to the 8th control turned out to be fatal to his aspirations. Bertuks would finish third, 2:02 after Hubmann, while the second position would be to the British Alasdair McLeod (Clydeside Orienteers), with a time of 34:23. Another highlight is the excellent result of the Portuguese Tiago Gingão Leal (GD4C), 8th placed with the time of 36:59. In the Women Elite class, Svetlana Mironova did a race not absent of mistakes – she lost two minutes in the two long legs -, winning with a time of 34:53, ahead of the Finnish Heini Saarimäki (Angelniemen Ankkuri), by the margin of 13 seconds. Marttiina Joensuu (SK Pohjantähti), with a time of 35:29, finished third, while the best Portuguese athlete in this class, Raquel Costa (GafanhOri), achieved a very creditable 9th place with a time of 38:18. A word to the Portuguese Manuel Dias (Lisbon OK), winner of the H60 class and to the 3rd place of Roy Dawson (GafanhOri) in the H65 class.

Held in the urban center of Punta Umbría, the Sprint stage took over the competitive program in the afternoon, having in the Belgian Yannick Michiels (TuMe) the big winner in the Men Elite class with 14 minutes to 3.5 km and 20 controls. The British Scott Fraser (TuMe) and Alasdair McLeod finished by this order in the immediate positions, with more 8 and 20 seconds, respectively, than the winner. Tiago Gingão Leal repeated the 8th place of the morning stage, having spent over 1:10 than the winner and quoting again as the best Portuguese. In the Women Elite class, Svetlana Mironova didn't give the chance to the concurrence again, fulfilling her course of 2.9 km and 15 controls in 13:51, against 13:55 of the British Ruth Holmes (Southern Navigators), second placed. The third position was occupied by the Norwegian Marte Narum, with 20 seconds more than the winner. Raquel Costa was again the best Portuguese athlete, concluding in the 11th place with a time of 15:15. The Sprint stage counted with the participation of 527 athletes, 500 in the competition classes and the rest in the Open class.

Full results and further information at http://andaluciaomeeting.com/.

[Photo: Andalucia O Meeting / facebook.com/AndaluciaOMeeting]

Joaquim Margarido

AOM 2015: Ready!

Tomorrow, by 3:40 p.m. in Spain, will start the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015, one of the most prestigious events of the winter season in Spain. Within a strong cartel - which includes, among others, Daniel Hubmann, second placed in the IOF's World Ranking -, Portugal is represented by 23 athletes, including some of the great values of our national orienteering.

For the second time in a row, the coastal town of Punta Umbría welcomes the Andalucia O' Meeting 2015, an event that is already an Orienteering reference in Spain and all over the world in the beginning of each season. Second event scoring for the Spanish Foot Orienteering League 2015, the AOM 2015 is organized by the Sun-O and the Ayuntamiento of Punta Umbría, with the support of the Tourism Provincial Patronate, the Consistorio and the Junta de Andalucía.

With 890 entries from 24 countries (numbers to whom must be added the participants in the open classes) the AOM 2015  starts tomorrow afternoon with the Prologue, in a fun format - “mass start”, two formal legs and two 'score' legs, alternately -, followed by three stages during the weekend. On Saturday will take place the stages of Middle Distance (in the morning) and Sprint (from 4.30 p.m. local time), both scoring for the respective IOF's World Rankings. The AOM 2015 ends on Sunday with the Long Distance stage. The Middle Distance WRE's course setter is Cristian Bellotto, the same of the WOC's Middle Distance that was awarded with the “Course of the Year 2014” prize, sponsored by World of O.

The Portuguese are present

Among the favourites, the highlights goes to the IOF's World Ranking nº 2, the Swiss Daniel Hubmann, reaching Punta Umbria with his 16 medals in World Championships (three silver medals in 2014) and 10 in European Championships (two golds at the European in Palmela). The major opponents of the Swiss will be the Latvian Edgars Bertuks, the Belgian Yannick Michiels, the British Scott Fraser and the young Russian Gleb Tikhonov. True helmsman of the “Spanish Army”, Andreu Blanes will be the big star of this great “casting”. Currently Long Distance World Champion and European Vice-Champion, Svetlana Mironova is the biggest name in the female sector, having the Norwegian Marianne Andersen and Siri Ulvestad as her biggest opponents.

In Punta Umbria will be, also, a little more than two dozen Portuguese athletes, namely Tiago Martins Aires and Raquel Costa, both from GafanhOri and Tiago Gingão Leal and Carolina Delgado, from the GD4C. Miguel Reis e Silva will be another Portuguese athlete at the AOM 2015 here representing his Finnish club of Turun Metsänkävijät.

For more detailed information, please see the event page at http://andaluciaomeeting.com/.

[Photo: Ayuntamiento de Punta Umbria / puntaumbria.es]

Joaquim Margarido