You can download this bulletin here.
Version to print out you can download here (size 35MB).

 Dear Orienteering Friends,

The Slovak Orienteering Federation (SZOŠ) is honoured to be awarded the organisation of the 2023 World Masters Orienteering Championships in Slovakia. Despite the three-year delay we would like to invite you again to Košice city and its surroundings in South-Eastern Slovakia. The second largest city of Slovakia, situated on the river Hornád, will offer excellent venues and entertainment for your enjoyable stay. Historic centre with many cultural monuments, boutiques, cafés, and summer restaurants will bring you opportunities to spend some pleasant moments between sports activities.

The local organisers from ATU Košice have picked beautiful and challenging terrains for you. For the Long Distance Final, we go to the unique Silická plateau with negative karst terrain, widely known for having been used for many important orienteering events organised on the border of Hungary and Slovakia such as World Cup, World University Championships, Junior World Orienteering Championships and World Orienteering Championships. The Middle-Distance Final will take place in technically very demanding terrain situated between Košice and Prešov. This terrain has never been used for orienteering before. And the Sprint Final in the heart of beautiful city Košice should satisfy all orienteering enthusiasts too. Various types of terrain requiring different specific skills of runners will offer an opportunity for fair and memorable competitions.

The SZOŠ and the organisers from ATU Košice would like to assure you that they will do their best to bring you a great WMOC 2023.

Come, visit us and enjoy yourself!

Andrej Patráš
president of SZOŠ

 Dear Orienteering Friends,

It is a great pleasure for us to have the opportunity to organise WMOC for the first time in Slovakia with the centre in the capital of eastern Slovakia – Košice. We are already a few weeks into 2022 but back in 2020 we were sadly not able to welcome all of you from around the world. Our plans were thwarted by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and nobody was able to predict its progress and impact on people, society, and economy.

Back then our dedicated team was fully prepared to successfully host the event. All the maps were ready with only the last revisions ahead of us. First drafts of interesting courses were designed for all of the disciplines and categories and the logistic planning of the competitions, except for small details, was finalised… The decision to postpone the event was not made easily but it was a logical consequence of the situation.
We, as organisers, were not discouraged by this situation and we are now fully committed to putting together “our WMOC 2020” which will be held on the new dates of August 11th – 18th, 2023.
We hope that your plans to take part in WMOC in Slovakia have not changed and that we will meet you next year in Košice along with those interested in the first time. You will have the opportunity to compete in interesting terrains and, at the same time, you will be able to enjoy our beautiful nature, historic sights and the kind-heartedness of the people of our country.

We look forward to meeting you.

Štefan Máj
Chairman
of Organising Committee

ORGANISERS CONTACT INFORMATION

Slovak Orienteering Federation

Orienteering club ATU Košice

Orienteering club Kysak

Event Director: Jozef Pollák

Address: WMOC 2020, Watsonova 4/A, 040 01 Košice, Slovakia

Telephone: +421 915 552 320

Email: info@wmoc2023.sk

Website: www.wmoc2023.sk

IOF ADVISERS CONTROLLERS

IOF Senior Event Adviser: Francesco Giandomenico (ITA)

IOF SEA Assistant: Dmytro Miller (ITA)

National Controller: Martin Jonáš

National Controller Assistants: Pavol Bukovác, Andrej Patráš, Peter Vandlíček

 SLOVAKIA

Slovakia is a mostly mountainous country located in central Europe with a population of 5.5 million people and Poland, Ukraine, Hungary, Austria and the Czech Republic border it. Slovakia is a member state of the European Union, NATO, the UN and many other international organisations. The national currency is the EURO (€). Slovakia’s capital and its largest city is Bratislava.

KOŠICE

Košice is the second largest city in Slovakia with around 250 000 inhabitants. Being the economic and cultural centre of eastern Slovakia, the city is home to the Košice Selfgoverning Region, the Slovak Constitutional Court, four universities, several museums, galleries and theatres. Most of the historical monuments are concentrated in the centre of city, the size of which makes it the biggest Town Monument Reserve of Slovakia. The gothic Saint Elizabeth Cathedral dominates the town centre with the State Theatre located near by. The main street, fringed by aristocratic houses with restaurants, boutiques and cafes serves as a city promenade.

In 2013 the city was awarded the prestigious title of European Capital of Culture and in 2016 the title of European City of Sport.

Košice is known as a city with a rich sporting tradition. The oldest marathon race in Europe has been organised there regularly since 1924. In the past there were many world events hosted in Košice such as the World Ice-hockey Championships 2019, the World University Orienteering Championships 2006 and the Junior World Orienteering Championship 2012.

Košice has a humid continental climate with an average high temperature in August of 25ºC and rainfall of 70mm.

 EVENT CENTRE

The WMOC 2023 Event Centre will be situated in Košice Culture Centre which is 10-15 minutes walk from the City centre and is easily accessible by car or public transport. Competitors will have the opportunity to use the WMOC Office, Coffee bar, Press centre, Information desk and visit some sport shops during the registration days.

Event centre address: Kulturpark, Kukučínova 2, 040 01 Košice, Slovakia

GPS coordinates: 48.714112, 21.256424

 PROGRAMME

Thursday 10th August Event Centre opens
Friday 11th August Model event Sprint
Saturday 12th August Sprint Qualification, Opening ceremony
Sunday 13th August Sprint Final, Prize giving ceremony
Monday 14th August Rest day, Model event Forest Qualification and Middle Final
Tuesday 15th August Forest Qualification
Wednesday 16th August Middle Final, Prize giving ceremony
Thursday 17th August Rest day, Model event Long Final
Friday 18th August Long Final, Prize giving ceremony, Closing ceremony

 COMPETITIONS

The WMOC Sprint distance competition consists of one Qualification race and a Final race. The WMOC Forest distance competitions consist of one Qualification race, a Middle Final race, and a Long Final race. Qualifiers for each Final will be determined in accordance with IOF Competition Rules.

Details will be published in Bulletin 2 and on the www.wmoc2023.sk.

 WINNING TIMES

according to IOF Competition Rules:

CLASS SQ+SF FQ MF LF CLASS SQ+SF FQ MF LF BORN
M35 12-15 50 30-35 70 W35 12-15 40 30-35 55 -1988
M40 12-15 50 30-35 65 W40 12-15 40 30-35 50 -1983
M45 12-15 45 25-30 60 W45 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1978
M50 12-15 45 25-30 55 W50 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1973
M55 12-15 40 25-30 50 W55 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1968
M60 12-15 40 25-30 50 W60 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1963
M65 12-15 40 25-30 50 W65 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1958
M70 12-15 40 25-30 50 W70 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1953
M75 12-15 40 25-30 50 W75 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1948
M80 12-15 40 25-30 50 W80 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1943
M85 12-15 40 25-30 50 W85 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1938
M90 12-15 40 25-30 50 W90 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1933
M95 12-15 40 25-30 50 W95 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1928
M100 12-15 40 25-30 50 W100 12-15 35 25-30 45 -1923

Legend

SQ = Sprint Qualification – winning time in minutes
SF = Sprint Final – winning time in minutes
FQ = Forest Qualifier – winning time in minutes
MF = Middle Final – winning time in minutes
LF = Long Final – winning time in minutes
Born: In order to participate, the athlete must be born in the year indicated or earlier.

 MEDALS

Will be awarded to the competitors finishing in top 3 places in each class (A-finals).

 COMPETITION LOCATIONS

 TRAVEL DISTANCES

from the Event Centre (EC):

Model Sprint Sprint Qualif Sprint Final Model Forest Forest Qualif Middle Final Model Long Long Final
3 km 3 km 3 km 20 km 15 km 39 km 69 km*
88 km**
70 km*
87 km**

* Car,van
** Bus,caravan

 SPRINT QUALIFICATION

Košice, Technical University campus

The Sprint Qualification race will take place in the Technical University campus and in the adjacent housing estate. The competition area is flat and consists of two different parts. One is the university campus with administrative buildings and adjacent parks. The second part is formed of older type of urban apartment blocks and small parks located between them. There are a few new residential buildings in the area too.

Map: ISSprOM 2019-2 standard, Scale 1:4000 or 1:3000, Contour interval 2m, Remapped 2023

 SPRINT FINAL

Košice, City centre

The Sprint final will be held directly in the centre of the town. The competition area is very flat with almost no climb and is a mixture of two different types of terrain. One is the historic city centre, consisting of a combination of streets, passages, courtyards and small squares with a few vegetation features. The other is formed by City Park. There are several vegetation features such as flowerbeds, hedges and some artificial features like statues and monuments. The arena will also be located in the park.

Map: ISSprOM 2019-2 standard, Scale 1:4000 or 1:3000, Contour interval 2m, Remapped 2023

 FOREST QUALIFIER

Budimír

The Forest Qualifier will take place only a short drive from Košice. The area is located between 250 and 410 m above sea level and is a combination of typical continental terrain with more detailed areas formed by landslides. There is a good path and forest road network. Tree cover is predominantly deciduous with very good runnability and visibility. There is only one small area of dense vegetation in the competition area. Navigating through the variety of terrain will require choosing optimal running speed.

Map: ISOM 2017-2 standard, Scale 1:10000 or 1:7500, Contour interval 5m, Remapped 2023

 MIDDLE FINAL

Sigord

The Middle Final competition will be held in the surroundings of the recreation centre Sigord which has never been used for orienteering before. The area is located between 420 and 570 m above sea level and is rich in terrain details originating from landslides and erosion where marshes are not uncommon. The forest is mostly deciduous and offers good runnability and visibility. Only a few green areas are located in the terrain. There is a good network of forest roads and paths. Detailed reading of map in demanding terrain with combination of compass use will be a great experience for all competitors.

Map: ISOM 2017-2 standard, Scale 1:10000 or 1:7500, Contour interval 5m, Remapped 2023

 LONG FINAL

Silica

Silická plateau, the most popular and attractive part of the Slovenský kras national park, will be the venue for the last final race. The area is located between 500 and 630 m above sea level and is well known for its karst terrain and is characterised by big depressions. A great variety of rock detail such as rock fields and cliffs of height of 1 to 3 metres can be found on the slopes of depressions. In the terrain there are several ravines originating from karst terrain erosion. Runners will experience three different kinds of vegetation in the area – deciduous forest with occasional coniferous trees, where runnability and visibility is very good, semi-open or open areas with varying runnability and visibility and parts of the terrain with dense vegetation. The competitors will find it challenging to execute the right route choice in this terrain.

Map: ISOM 2017-2 standard, Scale 1:10000 or 1:7500, Contour interval 5m, Remapped 2023

 ENTRIES and PAYMENT

Entries will be open from 1st of May 2022 at IOF Eventor.
It is possible to enter for one competition only (Sprint or forest competitions).
Entries become valid only after payment of the entry fee.

ENTRY FEES (€)

Deadline Sprint only Forest only Both together
10th January 2023 100 110 145
10th May 2023 120 130 165
30th June 2023 150 160 195

Competitors registered for WMOC 2020 have a discount of 30 EUR when entering for WMOC 2023. This amount has been kept in our account after cancelling the organisation of WMOC in 2020 from each competitor.

Competitors registered for WMOC 2020 will claim the discount of 30€ as follows:
1. Make a registration with the appropriate entry fee for each entry date (€145, €165, €195)
2. Choose the “Discount for registered in 2020” from the list of additional services

All payments can be made via bank transfer or card payment. Due to higher fees of card payments, we ask all competitors to use bank transfer as the preferred method. Details of WMOC 2023 account:

Name of the account: Klub orientacneho behu ATU Kosice
IBAN: SK04 0900 0000 0051 5469 3324
BIC/SWIFT: GIBASKBX
Owner address: Watsonova 4A, 040 01 Kosice
Bank: Slovenska sporitelna
Bank address: B. Nemcovej 30, 040 01 Kosice

CHANGES and LATE ENTRIES

Changes until 10th of May 2023 are free of charge. Afterwards the fee for a change is €10.
After 30th of June 2023 late entries are possible if vacancies still exist. Extra fee €30.

CANCELLATION POLICY

Before 10th of May 2023 – 100% refund. A small handling fee will be kept for banking costs.
Before 30th of June 2023 – 50% refund. A small handling fee will be kept for banking costs.
Afterwards – no refund.
The organiser reserves the right to cancel WMOC 2023 in the following circumstances:
– Force majeure
– Inability to guarantee adequate security for competitors and organisers
– On advice from the Slovak Government or its agents
e.g., the outbreak of an infectious disease or major environmental restrictions

In case of cancelation of the event by the organisers, entry fees will be refunded minus 30€.

PUNCHING SYSTEM

The SPORTident punching system will be used. Touch free mode (Air+) will be activated in addition to classic SPORTident punching. Both SI-cards and SIAC cards can be used. No SIAC cards will be available for rent.* SI8-cards can be hired from the organisers by choosing this option in the entry form. The hire charge for the entire week is € 15 if booked in advance. Without pre-registration the hire charge is € 5 for one day or € 20 for the entire week.
* difference compared to the pdf version of bulletin 1

EMBARGOED AREAS – old maps

Embargoed areas are shown on the webpage www.wmoc2023.sk/embargo or eventor.orienteering.org/Events

Old maps of the competition areas are available to download on the webpage www.wmoc2023.sk/oldmaps or info@wmoc2023.sk

ANTIDOPING

IOF Anti-doping rules apply: http://orienteering.org/anti-doping

CLOTHING

Spiked shoes are not allowed for Sprint Qualification and Sprint Final. The Organisers recommend full leg cover for the Forest Qualifier, Middle Final and Long Final. There are no other restrictions regarding clothing.

TRAINING POSSIBILITIES

Competitions held in similar terrains before the WMOC 2023 will be mentioned at www.wmoc2023.sk with links to the event.

The best opportunity to compete in terrains relevant to WMOC Long Final is the Slovak karst cup 2022 karst.obkosice.sk/2022-en

Maps of relevant areas for self-training can be provided by the organisers – contact info@wmoc2023.sk

PUBLIC RACE UPDATED!

The public 5-day competition “Slovak Karst Cup” karst.obkosice.sk/2023-en will be organised alongside the WMOC using the same areas as WMOC races.

ACCOMMODATION

City Košice and WMOC 2023 offers all kinds of accommodation from luxury hotels to campsite accommodation. You can find categories for hotels and guest-houses, and for student hostel and camp accommodation on www.wmoc2023.sk website.

For more information or booking please feel free to contact: accommodation@wmoc2023.sk (student hostel, camping)

FOOD

Košice has a plenty of restaurants to choose from where many different kinds of food are on offer. Most of these restaurants have summer gardens where you can sit, eat and drink. There are also places with fast food such as hotdog, kebab, pizza (from €3) and of course with traditional Slovak food. Beer brewing in Slovakia has a long history and a great tradition. Besides world-famous beers you can taste the locally produced beers from €1,50.

You will be able to purchase a meal in catering tents in the arenas during competitions.

TRANSPORT UPDATED!

There will be no organised transport to the Sprint Qualification and Sprint Final. Both Sprint arenas will be accessible by public transport which will have extra capacity at the times concerned.

The Organiser will provide transport to forest Models and forest competitions to a limited extent. A shuttle bus service will operate to a specific timetable from Vysokoskolska street.

Transport tickets can be purchased for € 60 via Eventor at the time of registration and by 10th of May 2023 at the latest. After that the cost will be € 90, subject to availability. The prices of daily tickets for transport provided by the organizer are €10 for the Model event Forest Qualifier and Middle (Lemešany), €10 for the Forest Qualifier (Budimír), €15 for the Middle Final (Sigord), and for the Model event Long Final (Silica) €25, at the Long Final (Silica) €25.
The payment must be paid to the above-mentioned WMOC account.

PARKING UPDATED!

Official car parking is only available for forest competitions and forest models. The price of the parking permit for cars is € 20. Parking for vans, caravans and buses will be available for Sprint and forest competitions, including models. The price of a parking permit for van/caravan is € 35, for bus € 80. The price of a daily parking ticket for a car is €5, for van/caravan is €10, for bus €20

Further transport and parking information will be published at www.wmoc2023.sk

Parking permits can be ordered via Eventor at the time of registration or at transport@wmoc2023.sk together with payment to the WMOC bank account.

VISA

You do not need a visa if you come from EU or the Schengen area.

Other international travellers may be required to hold a Slovak visa prior to travel to Slovakia, depending on your country of residence. For more information please visit http://www.slovak-republic.org/visa-embassies

If you require further assistance, please send an email to info@wmoc2023.sk

INSURANCE

Each competitor participates in the event at his/her own risk. We recommend you obtain personal health and/or travel insurance prior to travel.

CHILD CARE and LUGGAGE STORE

We can take care of your children and luggage while you are out running.

Children must be 3 years or older and nappy free. Enter your need at info@wmoc2023.sk

TRAVEL to KOŠICE UPDATED!

Košice is easy to reach of transport. There is an international airport, railway and bus station with many international direct train and coach connections.

Direct flights to Košice are from London Stansted, London Luton, Liverpool, Düsseldorf, Dublin, Prague, Vienna, Warsaw, and Bratislava. The city can be reached from airport by bus or by taxi. Several car rental companies have their offices in the airport.

Direct train connections to Košice are from Prague, Bratislava, Budapest, Krakow, Kiev and Vienna.

WELCOME

We look forward to meeting you at the start of great event – WMOC 2023 in Košice.