Portuguese Trail orienteering Championships 2016: Pinto, Valente and Domingues reach the gold

Ricardo Pinto, João Pedro Valente and Edgar Domingues were the great names of the Portuguese Trail orienteering Championships 2016, which took place in Lisbon. The first two athletes reached the national PreO titles, respectively in the Paralympic and Open classes, while Edgar Domingues is the new National Champion in TempO.

Highest point of Trail orienteering season, the Portuguese Trail orienteering Championships 2016 in PreO and TempO took place in the amazing "green lung" of Lisbon, which is Monsanto. Part of the Lisbon Trail Orienteering Meeting - event organized by the Clube Português de Orientação e Corrida and scoring for the European Cup in Trail orienteering ECTO 2016 – the Portuguese Championships attracted 16 national competitors, that joined 24 other athletes from abroas. The event was spared through three stages, all of them scoring for the Portuguese Trail orienteering League Invacare 2016.

Repeating the excellent result of the previous TempO stage, hold in Abrantes, Edgar Domingues (COC) was unbeatable once again, winning with the excellent result of 279 seconds. Edgar wasn't the fastest athlete responding to the thirty tasks (six timed stations with five tasks each), but he was the most accurate (two wrong answers only), eventually leading to won the national title and succeed, thus, to his sister Inês Domingues (COC), 3rd placed with 398 seconds. Occupying the intermediate position of the podium place, Nuno Pires (Ori-Estarreja) concluded his course with 357 seconds.

João Pedro Valente and Ricardo Pinto win in PreO

The PreO Portuguese Trail orienteering Championships 2016 saw João Pedro Valente (CPOC) being big winner in the Open Class. The athlete's victory - that comes from being crowned Spanish Champion,15 days ago, in Pontevedra - started to be drawn on the first day of competition, taking the lead with Nuno Rebelo (Ori-Estarreja) and a very small advantage over six other competitiors. In the last stage everything would be different and João Pedro Valente saw his advantage significantly expanded, relegating to the second place, five points away, the previous National Champion, Jorge Baltazar (GDU Azoia). The third place fell to Edgar Domingues (COC), with the same points as Nuno Rebelo (Ori-Estarreja) but with the advantage of having answered faster in all of the six timed tasks.

As for the Paralympic class, the scenario was quite similar, with Ricardo Pinto and Julio Guerra, both from DAHP, reaching the end of the first stage with the same number of points, but with the advantage to lean to Guerra, by the small margin of 0.5 second. The second stage, however, would clarify the positions. Ricardo Pinto performed really well, finishing his course with four points ahead from Julio Guerra and thus reaching his fourth national title in as many editions. José Laiginha Leal, also from DAHP, would occupy the lowest step of the podium, with less 10 points than the winner.

What did they say?

With two consecutive victories in TempO stages, the last of which to assert the national title, Edgar Domingues was, in the end, a happy man: “I'm surprised with these results and I'll try now to keep the level and achieve some good performances in the European Championships"”. Even without a clear explanation for the excellent start of the season, Edgar said that “being the technical responsible for two competitions recently could have been important, not only because it shows the event by an entirely different perspective but also because it's an excellent way to train and improve the accuracy techniques”. To “steal” the title to his sister, even more so on anniversary day, deserves from Edgar Domingues one last comment:”I really stay a little sad about the situation, but she is a great athlete, very promising, very young and from who we all can expect great results, both in European and World Championships.”

To recover a national title, even three years later, is a source of satisfaction for any athlete and João Pedro Valente is no exception. But ... “I still have this grief mismanagement of my time limit and that resulted, in the end, in a perfectly needless penalty point. To this must be added two wrong answers in the final part of the course, probably by the pressure of the watch, and it turned out to punish me”, said the athlete. João Pedro Valente add, however, that “this victory shows my good shape which is motivating; there are still many people who think that Trail orienteering is a matter of luck but the truth is that I already take a series of courses with good results, the latter one some very demanding tasks, and this consistency makes me think of a good result in the upcoming European Championships.”

In the aftermath of his fourth national title in a row, Ricardo Pinto left his impressions: “The goal was to win and be the National Champion, so I'm very satisfied. Despite a first day less achieved, things went very well on the second day and I'm very happy. This course was very difficult, very demanding at the map reading level and have been there that I have focused my training lately. I'm pleased by the results achieved and very motivated to go further.” To the World Championships?, we asked. “Let's hope so”, Ricardo concluded.

Results

PreO

Open Class

1. João Pedro Valente (CPOC) 38/46 points (45 seconds)

2. Jorge Baltazar (GDU Azoia) 33/46 points (103 seconds)

3. Edgar Domingues (COC) 32/46 points (115 seconds)

4. Nuno Rebelo (Ori-Estarreja) 32/46 points (167 seconds)

5. Cláudio Tereso (ATV) 31/46 points (104 seconds)

6. Inês Domingues (COC) 31/46 points (157 seconds)

Paralympic Class

1. Ricardo Pinto (DAHP) 32/46 points (231 seconds)

2. Julio Guerra (DAHP) 28/46 points (304.5 seconds)

3. José Laiginha Leal (DAHP) 22/46 points (270 seconds)

4. Cláudio Poiares (DAHP) 19/46 points (322 seconds)

5. Alexandre Guedes da Silva (Individual) 18/46 points (139.5 seconds)

6. Ana Paula Marques (DAHP) 18/46 points (329.5 seconds)

TempO

1. Edgar Domingues (COC) 279 seconds

2. Nuno Pires (Ori-Estarreja) 357 seconds

3. Inês Domingues (COC) 398 seconds

4. Jorge Baltazar (GDU Azoia) 415.5 seconds

5. Cláudio Tereso (ATV) 424.5 seconds

6. Nuno Rebelo (Ori-Estarreja) 435.5 seconds

Full results, maps, solutions and other information at http://ltom2016.cpoc.pt/.

Joaquim Margarido

Two or three things I know about it...

1. Laura Scaravonati (GS Forestale) achieved last weekend the 38th Italian title of her career so far, both in Foot orienteering and MTB orienteering. On the hills of San Daniele del Friuli, she performed in the best way, reaching the National MTB orienteering title in Middle Distance. Laura took the lead in the first control and did a very consistent race, winning with the time of 46:07. Marina Rainer (Villach Team) from Austria was second with more 2:07, while Milena Cipriani (Panda Valsugana) took the third position with a time of 50:09. To the Garmin.it blog [HERE] Laura said: “On Saturday I arrived in the area quite early and I tried to understand a little the terrain and Sunday I felt really good. I had very strong sensations during the warm-up and I knew I could push hard the whole race and so it was. The course didn't hide particular dangers that we sometimes found in Middle races. I didn't have a single hesitation in the map reading and also the ride off tracks allowed me to correct any navigational mistakes. I took my 38th Italian titles since I started practicing this sport; it doesn't seem real.”

2. The Swedish FootO League kicked off last weekend with the first two races – Sprint and Long Distance - being held in Brösarp, in the region of Skåne. Both stages scored for the IOF World Ranking Event. Along with a Middle Distance course, on Friday, the two stages were EOC observation races, attended by almost two hundred Elite runners, mostly from Sweden, but also from Norway, Russia, Austria, Czech Republic, Italy and Great Britain, among other countries. In two really tight fights, Gustav Bergman won the Middle (with less 6 seconds than Albin Ridefelt) and the Sprint (Emil Svensk being second at 3 seconds). Albin Ridefelt was first in the Long, also here with a short win of 6 seconds over William Lind. In the Women class we had three winners for as much stages. Sara Hagström was faster 1 second than Lina Strand in the Middle, Tove Alexandersson won comfortably the Sprint with 17 seconds over (again) Lina Strand and Emma Johansson got a close victory of 3 seconds over Alva Olsson, second. See results and maps at http://news.worldofo.com/2016/04/11/swedish-league-eoc-observation-races-maps-results/.

3. At the forthcoming IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on 7-8 May, women will be able to participate in the senior 50km race walk event. This is one of the most recent developments in sport, approaching men and women. And what about Orienteering? Are there too many differences between men and women, requiring some changes? Not that many, I believe, but still… Over the last year there has been some debate amongst the international orienteering community regarding the IOF winning time for the women’s long distance event, and whether it should be extended or not. However, the majority of these debates have been informal, over a variety of social media platforms, with not many international women elite athletes taking part. Now, the IOF Foot-O Athletes’ Commission has been putting together a survey on the topic, which will be sent out to all female elites (junior and senior) who have run an IOF Foot-O event since 01-01-2015 and that will be open from Wednesday April 20 until Sunday May 2 23:59 (CET). The Commission considers that, before the survey is carried out, it would be interesting to host a discussion of the possible reasons behind - and implications of - altering the long distance winning time, and has prepared a document with some discussions on this topic. Please see the information document for further details at http://orienteering.org/athlete-survey-estimated-winning-time-for-womens-long-distance-events/.

4. After two competitions of the Unofficial European Cup in Trail Orienteering ECTO 2016, held in Portugal, the updated standings are now published. The winner of last year’s ECTO, Erik Stålnacke (IFK Göteborg) from Sweden is in the lead with 70 points, after his victory in the first stage and the 9th place in the second stage. Marco Giovannini (OK Trzin) from Italy is second with 67 points, thanks to his victory in the second day and a less good performance in the TempO stage (11th position). In third position ex-æquo, with 63 points, we can see Remo Madella (VIVAIO) from Italy (2n placed in the TempO stage) and Martin Fredholm (OK Linné) from Sweden (3rd position in the PreO stage). The best portuguese in this special board are Edgar Domingues (COC) and João Pedro Valente (CPOC) with 43 points each. You may check the full results of the Unofficial European Cup in Trail Orienteering ECTO 2016 after the two first stages at http://orienteering.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ECTO-2016-standing-after-2-Rounds.pdf.

5. The team that will represent Great-Britain at the World Trail Orienteering Championships 2016, to be held in Sweden from 22nd to 27th August, has been selected. The names in the Open PreO class are John Kewley (MDOC), Ian Ditchfield (MV) and Nick Barrable (SYO); Tom Dobra (UBOC) will join them for the TempO. The Open Relay Team will be selected in Sweden. For the Paralympic PreO class, Dick Keighley (WIM), Peter Roberts (EBOR) and John Crosby (NATO) got the passport to Strömstad. Unfortunately John Crosby is unable to travel so there will not be a team for the Paralympic Relay. Anne Braggins will be the Team Leader. More to know at https://www.britishorienteering.org.uk/site/trailo/news.

Joaquim Margarido

Magdalena Olsson: "I'm looking forward to come to Siberia"

After six years in Umeå, combining the forestry studies with her sport career, Magdalena Olsson moved to Lviv, in Ukraine, where she'll live for the next two months, preparing the Master Thesis in forestry. The Portuguese Orienteering Blog met her in the middle of both good training and interesting studying – but also cooking and singing -, and here you are the result of a really nice talk.

The Ski Orienteering season is over and I believe the greatest memory you keep from it is the relay gold medal in Obertilliach, in the ESOC's last day. Am I right? Do you still feel the emotion of that moment?

Magdalena Olsson (M. O.) – Yes, you’re right. That's my strongest memory from this season. I'm really glad about the gold medal, but most of all I made my best race of the whole season that day. As I started a while behind the lead I knew I had to make my best and to push until the finish. I caught some teams and this gave me some extra energy to fight. When I passed the spectator control I heard that I had caught time on the leaders and got even more energy on the last loop. It was a great race for me and, after finishing, it was really exciting to watch Tove making a great performance on the last leg!

How do you rate your season? Is your 5th place in the World Cup overall something that you've been expected?

M. O. - I would say that this season has been my best one so far in my Ski orienteering career. Even if I won't be able to take an individual medal this year, I am very glad that I could make stable races all winter. This has been a problem for me earlier, where I could make both good and bad performances. This year I have been top 6 on many World Cup races, which I'm really glad about and my 5th place in the World Cup overall shows that I have made many good races. Becoming so stable gives me hope that I will be able to reach the podium in the upcoming season.

Looking on the most important moments, can you point the Ski Orienteering achievement of the season?

M. O. - I have been impressed by many strong athletes this winter, both experienced ones, like Lars Moholdt and Maria Kechkina on the European Championship, but also many younger ones like Evelina Wickbom and Markus Lundholm, in the Swedish team, that took big steps this winter.

Hod did you met Orienteering?

M. O. - I have been doing Foot orienteering for as long as I can remember, since my whole family does this sport. At the age of 15 I tried the Ski orienteering for the first time and immediately fell in love by this sport. Skiing on technical narrow tracks in the forest was really hard in the beginning and therefore I made some really bad races along my first season, but still I had so much fun. I decided to start fighting to become better and now, 10 years later, I am really glad that I made that decision.

Is the option for Ski orienteering a kind of upgrade?

M. O. - To be able to combine my two favorite sports, - Cross-country skiing and Orienteering – is, of course, perfect!

What attracts you the most in Ski Orienteering? And what is the worst part?

M. O. - I like the speed on technical tracks combined with really fast decisions in the Orienteering. It's also necessary to be very versatile in your skiing technique, where you have to be strong both on wide tracks and narrow tracks. Balance is very important in ski orienteering when the tracks are windy or on shortcuts. I also think that Ski orienteering have made me a better cross country skier because of all this. The worst part of Ski orienteering is that it requires a lot of snow and if there is not so much snow you can easily destroy the skis.

We are facing now a long pause until Autumn and the first snows. What are the alternatives for a ski-orienteer during a whole period of lack of snow? Do you have any plans to keep the good shape?

M. O. - It's not so hard to be active when there is no snow since I also love Foot orienteering. I’ve already started this season with four orienteering competitions and one running competition. Between the orienteering competitions I do a lot of versatile trainings, like roller skiing, biking, strength, yoga, swimming. I'm a very active person and I like to try many different activities. In summer and autumn I will go to some training camps to get more specific training for Ski orienteering.

We'll have this year the WOC in your home country. Do you feel some special emotion about that? Are you planning to follow the event?

M. O. - I hope I will have time to go there and watch some of the races. It's always fun to watch the strongest orienteers when they run.

Who will be the brightest star of the World Championships?

M. O. - I will cheer for my teammate Tove Alexandersson, of course, and I hope she can stay away from injuries and make her best there.

The WSOC will return in 2017. Are you already thinking in Krasnoyarsk?

M. O. – Yes, I'm definitely thinking about this and it is a big goal for me to be there in my best shape ever. I think it will be very technical and challenging races in Krasnoyarsk and this summer I will do my best to prepare for that. I'm looking forward to come to Siberia!

Would you like to share with us your biggest wish?

M. O. - That people all over the world will start to care more about the environment so we can continue with Ski orienteering and all other winter sports.

[Photo: Courtesy of Magdalena Olsson]

Joaquim Margarido

LTOM 2016: Maps, solutions and results

Further information at http://ltom2016.cpoc.pt/.

Joaquim Margarido

LTOM 2016: Moments (2)

© Joaquim Margarido