In 2018, a new name became the talk of the Asian orienteering community—the Asian Cup. Its conception follows a line of newly founded Asian-wide events, which also include the Asian Junior and Youth Orienteering Championships (AsJYOC) and the Asian Trail Orienteering Championships.
While Europe is already widely known as the “hinterland” of the orienteering sport with an abundance of “European-wide” events (EOC, EYOC, ETOC…), the trend is just catching up in Asia with only a handful of countries (mainly in East Asia) with sufficient talent to field teams. Many more countries (mainly in Southeast Asia) still in a foundation stage with a very small core of orienteers. So why the Asian Cup, and how is it different from the other Asian-wide events (AsOC etc.)?
The Asian Cup
The Asian Cup is led and administered by the Orienteering Association of Hong Kong, which is also one of the first places in Asia to have formal orienteering (see the article Did you know…?)
OAHK has set up a website to host information relating to the four Asian-wide events (AsOC, Asian Cup, AsJYOC, ATOC), which looks largely identical in design to the OAHK website.
Unlike the World Cup in orienteering, there is no such thing as an independent Asian Cup stage event. Most Asian Cup events are World Ranking Events, but the Asian Cup also includes the Asian Orienteering Championships. Relay events (sprint/forest) may also be included.
Participation in the Asian Cup is restricted to elite competitors registered by their federations, and no more than 30 males and 30 females per federation (Note: this equals the maximum number of people allowed to join the Elite class in Hong Kong ranking events each year, separately for sprint and middle/long distance events). IOF top level event rules also apply (must hold full passport of that country, must have IOF athlete license). Cup results are computed using a 40-rank scoring system ranging from the 1st (100 points) to the 40th rank (9 points) for each stage. Other finishers will be given 5 points for each stage. Scores and overall titles are awarded to both individuals and federations.
A South Korean athlete at the sprint race of the 2018 Asian Orienteering Championships, part of the Asian Cup for the first time in AsOC history.
Which events are included in the Asian Cup?
The calendar of the 2019 Asian Cup that year, as announced by OAHK, is as follows:
- Japan, 14 April 2019 (All Japan Orienteering Championship in Nikko)
- Malaysia, 5 October 2019 (Malaysia Polytechnic Orienteering Championship in Kuantan, also see Tropical Orienteering Week)
- Taipei, 12–13 October 2019 (Kinmen Orienteering Championships)
- China, date to be confirmed (editor’s note: very likely to be the final stage of the Historical Road Championships this year on 14–15 October 2019)
Who won the Asian Cup last year?
See this file. We haven’t found the federation scores but you can add the athletes’ scores up and get the result.
Got itchy feet?
Remember that the Asian Cup is limited to Asian elite athletes only, so unless you take up the nationality of one of the participating federations, you can’t really be part of it. However, most events are also World Ranking Events at the same time so it’s a good idea to check the calendar and book your trip (why not consider the Tropical Orienteering Week in Malaysia?)
There are few opportunities in the life of a university student to meet on one spot hundreds of people from places all across China and even Europe, while at the same time to enjoy the natural scenery and typical food of the hosts.
All these characters and chapters in our Kunming story have one thing in common: the challenging discipline of orienteering which combines the ability to run and the ability to navigate through an unknown territory with a map and a compass.
The annual 10-day orienteering gathering we are attending was founded in 2016 by mappers from Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangdong province.
With the aim to provide a platform for competing, training, and exchange of ideas, and with the mission to create a wave of interest for orienteering across China, its Chinese name was translated into “Big Dipper 10-Day Wave”.
Thanks to our extremely dedicated and loving organisers, we have had the privilege to run in a small village, on university campuses, in a shopping mall, in an pear orchard, a hill forest above a Taoist temple, and a lakeside golf course.
Each of the tracks came with its own challenges; the windy alleys and many corners of the village, or the impassable fences and rough terrain of the pear orchard demanded a lot of attention and precision.
Among the orienteering enthusiasts in our training there are parents and their children, as well as teachers and their students.
By sharing the passion for orienteering, we all are a colourful mosaic of individuals contributing to the diversity of our training.
For some orienteering may be just a competition, however in our 10-day training orienteering is a means to learn and be inspired by others, to reflect on our performance, and to strive for improvement.
The more we discuss together the map and the various routes each of us attempted after a competition, the clearer the contours and colours of our individual personalities and orienteering abilities become, and the more we learn from each other.
