Discussion: IOF restores WOC qualifiers!

http://orienteering.org/first-version-of-guideline...

see page 11 and 15

April comes early in Scotland?

Does this really mean that there will be qualifications in the future? It's not exactly an official announcement, but looks good.

If there are any discussions about reintroducing qualification races it's news to me, and the last Foot O Commission meeting was only the weekend before last....

All this document does is provide information on qualification races if they are part of the program, which they still are for some events at World Cup level (e.g. the European Championships).

It also could be that the document was first started prior to the IOF decision, and the reference has simply not been updated. Useful paper though.

The WOC guidelines Doc dates from Dec 2011 :/

A couple of things that I think I recall, which will probably add to the confusion:
The new qualification regime was to be in place by 2016, with WOC 14 and 15 organisers having the option of introducing them earlier.
Early indications from WOC 15 were that they would be retaining qualification heats but that was before WOC 14 adopted the new system.

So is it possible that this document either pre-dates a final decision by WOC 15, or (probably too much to ask for...) that in all the noise the Scots have been quietly carrying on with their original plans on the basis that was their choice?

There's Scot to be a chance for qualifiers...

... it could be tricky.

That qualifies as terrible.

It's all in the graeme.

Just out of interest Blair, did we (Austraya) vote for or against the abolition of qualifiers ?
(I think there was a vote no ?)

We voted against. The vote was 20-16 if I recall correctly.

What was the vote for alternating forest and sprint WOC? And I wonder what that vote would be now given what countries know now about the finalized WOC format.

That was what the vote was for (which, I guess, means the vote wasn't specifically about qualification races, but the alternating format was the only option on the table where that was a possibility).

I must admit it was impressive how the former IOF president put up the votes against each other. A tactical masterpiece resulting in congress accepting councils proposal, the only proposal nobody really wanted.

I hope some nations will come forward a split WOC proposal again. Rumors say even members of IOF council hopes for this(and are pushing for nations to do so). I would be surprised to see if that proposal will fall again. Any nation who lost their start spots should support this as well as any other nation. As the proposal originates from the the nordic countries, I suppose they also will support it.

Another thing, interesting to see how IOF officials now are pushing for SportIdent Air (touch-free) to be used at WOC 2014 even though the system is not aproved for WOC by IOF. See minutes of the latest IOF Foot-O commission meeting in January:http://orienteering.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12...
First of all why do we need touch-free at all? Just because it is a new thing or because it is really needed? IOF officials try to build a picture of the latter, but where is the evidence? Can anyone present evidence that shows touch-free punching is needed?
Looking at all World Cup knock-out races it doesn't seem to be the case. There has only been very few delays using normal punching in these races, and even if it occurs it only adds value to being in front and doing your own navigation. Add to that how ridiculous punching looked at the sprint relay in Switzerland. I thought orienteering wasn't about who dared to be furthest away from the "control". Punching is essential, it is a part of the nature of orienteering.
Again why do we need touch-free punching? I cant find any real reason.

Punching is essential, it is a part of the nature of orienteering.

I'm no particular fan of SportIdent Air (or any particular technology in that arena), but I find the above statement pretty surprising. Of all of the aspects of orienteering I could list, punching seems to me to be the least important. If there were some method in use that did not involve punching at all (e.g. if orienteering had grown up with you having to run between two vertical poles at each control, with officials watching and writing down bib numbers), I can't see that the sport would suffer at all.

Punching sucks.

The WOC and JWOC races have always made an effort to use the best technology available. And I would also argue that touch-free punching is definitely needed. A few years ago at JWOC in Poland there was a three-way tie for first place in the middle distance. I'd say punching makes quite a bit of difference at that point, and we should try to eliminate those tiny differences so that the results are based entirely on an athlete's ability to run and navigate. Isn't that what orienteering is about?

Careful, though -- a tie is a tie. If people took the same amount of time, it doesn't make sense to add meaningless decimal points to the results to distinguish between them. The question to consider is whether randomness in punching time is larger than randomness in other things that you can't control. If it's smaller, then it's not worth ironing out in the name of fairness. There are lots of environmental irregularities in orienteering, compared to other sports. But there may be other good reasons for a given punching system.

For last control orienteering doesn't need Touch-free but simply just an arch. Last control is normally very easy and more or less "spectator" or "TV" control. Punching at this control sometimes decide the final order and this looks very strange on TV. A debate from 3 years ago http://www.attackpoint.org/discussionthread.jsp/me...

Is there any news when and where other elite runners not running WC races (Sprint Relay) will have a chance to test Sportident Air before WOC?

IOF was too conservative 14 years ago to accept PWT but now they want to be to aggressive adopting new things in orienteering. How is possible that they can't take responsibility for rules they've accepted? New Qualifications system should start in 2016 but they put "small print" if organizers wish to adopt earlier... same with Sportident Air. This is not fair. How is possible that they govern the sport with those "moves"?

EChild >> As well as mapreading and fast running speed are usefull skills, so is good punching technique, all those skills can be improved through training... Is it fair the fastest punching technique wins? It can't differ much from reaction time in 100m sprint or turn in swimming.

Kofols >> What looks the most odd on TV? Punching a control or runners swinging their arm to punch the control? (one runner having the card in the right side, might gain unfair time over a runner with the card in the opposite side)
The situation you describe is easy to avoid - just make sure runners pass straight through the control (and having enough units) instead of comming from one side.

so is good punching technique, all those skills can be improved through training

Copying your course onto a blank map was once "a part of the nature of orienteering", too, and it's also a skill that can be improved through training, but I don't think many people still think we should have hung onto that one.

jjcote >> I guess that's the same development as going from from old punching to electronic punching. The result is the same, the control is being physically punched. In your scenario the result is also the same, a map with a course.
Touch free is not the same, have you ever seen it in use?

We trialled SI Air in Scotland two weeks ago.

Reaction was universally popular : it just worked. With conventional punching, fair control layout for a sprint relay would be a nightmare: few things have exercised the course setters more strongly. Obstruction and swipe-and-hope punching would be the norm, unless you go down the Columbian route of massively variable gaffling. I'm 97.67% sure WOC2015 will use hands-free, at least for the Sprint Relay. I'd be surprised if WOC2014 didn't use it.
@kofols - running through an arch is fine with SI air. One of our elites ran the race with the SI Card pinned to his headband - literally hands free! Everything registered fine, just like it does with chip timing in road races.

Thanks graeme for this info. Could you provide a photo?