For the third time, we hosted the best orienteering competitors from all over Poland, as well as athletes from the Czech Republic, Russia, Germany, Ukraine and Estonia, here in the Bolesławiec region. More than 500 competitors came to Bolesławiec and the forests of Osiecznica Municipality (586 people had registered). They were drawn by one of the largest and best competitions in Poland in this discipline – the “Puchar Borów Dolnośląskich”. Although this event has a very short history—it is only the third edition—it has already built an excellent reputation in Poland and abroad. It is organised by the “Tukan” Iwiny and “Orientpark” Osiecznica Students’ Sports Clubs, with support from MOSiR Bolesławiec, Osiecznica Municipality, Bolesławiec County, the 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade from Świętoszów, the Bolesławiec and Świętoszów Forest Districts, and “LGD Bory Dolnośląskie”.
Participants
The number of participants has steadily increased from year to year (the first edition in 2010 attracted just over 200 people). These are now the largest sporting competitions in Bolesławiec County. They attract world-class competitors. Among those we hosted were the current double medallist at the World Military Championships, Wojciech Kowalski of WKS Śląsk Wrocław (world champion in the relay and silver medallist in the individual event); Rafał Podziński of UKS “Orientuś” Łódź, the current junior world champion in the relay; Hanna Wiśniewska (WKS Śląsk Wrocław), 2010 junior world vice-champion and gold medallist in the team classification at the World Military Championships; her teammate Daria Lajn of UKS “Azymut” Pabianice; and Paulina Faron of “Wawel” Kraków. Foreign stars included Tomas Dlabaja, number one in the Czech rankings and among the world’s leading competitors, and Maryia Polischuk of Ukraine, a junior European vice-champion. Medallists from the Polish Junior Championships, youth and senior competitors, and local champions also took part: junior Polish champion in the middle distance Małgosia Szeliga and her brother Bartek Szeliga, the 2011 ISF world vice-champion.
However, this competition was not only for the elite. Some participants were competing for the first time, and the age range was enormous—from several-year-old “little ones”, still taking part under their parents’ supervision in the family category, to experienced veterans (categories K 50+ and M 60+). Orienteering is a family and multigenerational sport. At the same competition, an entire family can compete, each in their own category according to gender and age. The organisers also prepared two promotional categories: OPEN 1 for complete beginners and OPEN 2 for the more ambitious.
Three stages of competition
The event had three stages. The first was a night race through central Bolesławiec on Friday evening. Residents, gradually getting ready for bed, were surprised when several hundred people suddenly “set off” into the city with headlamps, searching for checkpoints in various courtyards and alleys. Competitors started from the grounds of Primary School No. 2 (and, on this occasion, we thank the management of Miejski Zespół nr 3 for making the site available), then headed—depending on their age category and choice of route variants—to checkpoints located in the courtyards and streets of the city centre. The whole event was broadcast live on the large screen near “Forum” Cinema, where the finish was also located. The residents of Bolesławiec responded very warmly to our event. The students of the School Complex of Commerce and Services, under the direction of Dariusz Rataj, were particularly helpful; they volunteered their time to help ensure the smooth running of the competition. Many thanks to you for everything you did!
The second stage was a middle-distance race held on Saturday (start at 12:00) on the site of the former “Sahara” training ground near Przejęsław. It is truly exceptional terrain by Polish standards. Much of the area consists of heathland and dunes in so-called semi-open terrain, with trees growing in some places. Together, these features create a distinctive and somewhat exotic atmosphere that the competitors enjoyed. Soldiers from the 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade in Świętoszów provided organisational support to ensure the smooth running of this stage. Providing electricity from a generator, making tents available and setting them up, as well as medical support, was very valuable and significant assistance. After the race, the “Panzer troops” invited everyone to Świętoszów and showed them their main tool of the trade—the Leopard tank.
In the evening, an awards ceremony for the winners of Friday’s night sprint, which had the status of the Open Lower Silesian Championships, was held at the Military Club. The ceremony was preceded by a screening of a film from the race. In addition to medals and certificates, participants received material prizes and tree seedlings—more than 300—from Wojciech Moskaluk, head of the Świętoszów Forest District. It was part of an initiative entitled “Plant Your Own Orientpark”. The awards were presented by Osiecznica Municipal Head Waldemar Nalazek and County Head Cezary Przybylski. After the ceremony, the map authors and course planners for our competition, Wojciech Dwojak and Kostyantyn Mayasov, presented an overview and analysis of the best runners’ performances in both stages. The evening ended with a meeting with the stars of the competition.
There was little time to recover, because at 10:00 on Sunday, following a Mass celebrated for the participants of the “Puchar Borów Dolnośląskich”, the third stage took place. This time it was a classic-distance (long-distance) race with a pursuit start. Competitors started in their categories in the order in which they had placed after the first two stages, with the time gaps they had accumulated. The contest was highly spectacular and, in some categories, continued right to the end. In the men’s elite, Tomas Dlabaja started with a lead of just under half a minute, which he maintained for most of the twelve-kilometre course, only to be caught and overtaken in the final phase of the race.
Local winners
For our local clubs from Iwiny and Osiecznica, medals were won by: gold medals for Stanisław Pachnik in the youngest M-10 category and Bartek Szeliga in the M-16 category, and a bronze medal for Dominik Knichał from Osiecznica. Unfortunately, Angelika Haniszewska, who finished second in the K-18 category, ahead of European vice-champion Maryia Polischuk among others, lost the necessary concentration and missed one of the checkpoints, which resulted in disqualification. Marcin Wieczorek (M-16), who crossed the finish line in third place, was also unable to contain his emotions. Nevertheless, there is no denying his ambition and perseverance. From the third checkpoint onwards, he ran with a cut foot. In the forest, he stepped on a broken bottle, which pierced the sole of his shoe and became lodged in his leg. Małgosia Szeliga took a very high sixth place in the women’s elite category, while Dominika Burdyna (K-18), who fought to the very last metres, finished fifth after falling at the finish.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank everyone who helped organise this genuinely logistically complex event. Our Honorary Patrons: Bolesławiec Mayor Piotr Roman; Bolesławiec County Head Cezary Przybylski; Osiecznica Municipal Head Waldemar Nalazek; Mayor of Nový Bor (Czech Republic) Jaromir Dvorak; President of LGD Bory Dolnośląskie, Jerzy Ludwin; Commander of the 10th Armoured Cavalry Brigade, Cezary Podlasiński; Head of the State Forests’ Bolesławiec Forest District, Władysław Nowak; and Head of the State Forests’ Świętoszów Forest District, Wojciech Moskaluk. We also thank Danuta Gajowiak, Head of the John Paul II Lower Secondary School in Iwiny, for making the facility available to the competition participants, and the school staff for exemplary preparation and maintaining order throughout the event; Joanna Matejewicz, Head of Kliczków Castle, for making the castle grounds available as the competition centre; Wiesław Rozmus for preparing the checkpoint stands free of charge; Józef and Łukasz Skorupski, who provided medical support during the third stage; Jerzy Erhardt, forester in Przejęsław; Krzysztof Staszak, Commander of the Świętoszów Forest Guard; and Janusz Ćwikla, head of the Military Club in Świętoszów, for making the facility and all its equipment available. Above all, however, our warmest thanks and deepest respect for their tremendous commitment to the competition go to the parents of the athletes from Uczniowski Klub Sportowy “Tukan” Iwiny. Once again, they rose to the occasion and devoted themselves to their assigned tasks throughout all the days of the event, sometimes for a dozen or more hours a day. They are an invaluable asset to us and the envy of most sports-event organisers in Poland. They represent tremendous potential for our club. Thank you all, and we already invite you to the next edition of the competition!
(information: DP/ii)