North American Orienteering Championships Explained

North American Orienteering Championships
Status:active
Genre:sports event
Date:May—November
Frequency:biennial
Venue:various
Location:various
Country:Canada, United States
Prev:2024
Next:2026
Organised:IOF, Orienteering Canada, Orienteering USA
Website:https://www.cal-o-fest.com

The North American Orienteering Championships (NAOC) is a biennial orienteering event organized by the International Orienteering Federation.

Originally, the North American Orienteering Championships consisted of just two forest races. The competition was held in odd-numbered years until 1977, after which it changed to even numbered years starting in 1980. A sprint race was added to the program in 2006. The event's location always alternates between Canada and the United States. The NAOC has been held in conjunction with other orienteering competitions such as the Canadian Orienteering Championships (1990, 1998, 2018, 2024) and the Asia-Pacific Orienteering Championships (1990, 2002).[1]

The current championship events are a long distance, middle distance, sprint distance, and either a forest relay or sprint relay. The events can take place in any order.[2] The competition has open age and gender categories as well as an elite category. Throughout the competition, points earned by Canadian and American competitors in the elite categories are added up. The team with the most points is declared the winner and is awarded the Bjorn Kjellstrom Cup, first awarded in 1980.[3]

Competition format! Distance! ! Notes
Long distance 70–80 min (women)
90–100 min (men)
Middle distance 30–35 min
Sprint 12–15 min
Forest Relay 105–135 min Three-person teams
Sprint Relay 55–60 min Mixed four-person teams

Venues and winning teams

Year Dates Location Host Club(s) Winning Team
19716—7 November Dumfries, VirginiaQuantico Orienteering Club
19731—2 September Gatineau Park, QuebecOttawa Orienteering Club
1975 24—25 May Bear Brook State Park, New HampshireNew England Orienteering Club
19778—9 October Lachute, QuebecRamblers Orienteering Club
19801—2 November Brecksville Reservation, OhioNortheast Ohio Orienteering Club Canada
198221—22 August Carberry, ManitobaManitoba Orienteering Association United States
19846—7 October Harriman State Park, New YorkHudson Valley Orienteering Club Canada
198616—17 August Milton and Barrie, OntarioHamilton King's Foresters Canada
198829—30 October Hickory Run State Park, PennsylvaniaDelaware Valley Orienteering Club Canada
199011—12 August Caroline, AlbertaAlberta Orienteering Association
Edmonton Overlanders Orienteering Club
Canada
19927—8 November Prince William Forest Park, VirginiaQuantico Orienteering Club Canada
199420—21 August Barrie, OntarioHamilton King's Foresters Canada
199619—20 October Meramec State Park, MissouriSt. Louis Orienteering Club Canada
19982—3 August Bonaparte Provincial Park and Merritt, British ColumbiaSage Orienteering Club Canada
200028—29 October Harriman State Park, New YorkHudson Valley Orienteering Canada
200213—14 July Dalmuir, AlbertaFoothills Wanderes Orienteering Club
Edmonton Overlanders Orienteering Club
Canada
200429—30 May Cleveland, OhioNortheast Ohio Orienteering Club Canada
20066—9 October Hamilton and Milton, OntarioGolden Horseshoe Orienteering Canada
200826—28 September Altmar and Fayetteville, New YorkCentral New York Orienteering Canada
20102—4 July Cranbrook, British ColumbiaKootenay Orienteering Club
Foothills Wanderers Orienteering Club
Greater Vancouver Orienteering Club
United States
201218—21 October Delaware Water Gap, PennsylvaniaDelaware Valley Orienteering Club United States
201410—13 October Arnprior, OntarioOrienteering Ottawa United States
201623—25 September Hanover, New HampshireOrienteering USA Canada
201818—21 August Whitehorse and Carcross, YukonYukon Orienteering Association United States
2020Not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2022
202328–31 July Truckee, CaliforniaBay Area Orienteering Club
Cascade Orienteering Club
United States
20246—11 August Kingston and Calabogie, OntarioOrienteering Ottawa Canada

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Discussion: North American OC chronicle . . 14 August 2012 . Attackpoint . 28 July 2020.
  2. Web site: Competition Rules for International Orienteering Federation (IOF) Foot Orienteering Events . . 1 February 2020. International Orienteering Federation. 28 July 2020.
  3. Web site: Bjorn Kjellstrom Cup . Orienteering USA . 17 August 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151030011930/https://orienteeringusa.org/bjorn-kjellstrom . 30 October 2015.