Discussion: Orienteering Genes

In 1987 Ross Burnett won the Canadian Championship in Men’s 21E Classic. Yesterday his daughter, Kerstin, won the Women’s 21E in the middle distance. As far as I can determine this was the only time a parent-child combination has been Canadian champions in the elite class.
That rare example only lasted one day. Today Emma Waddington joined her father, Mike. She won the Women’s 21E sprint.
Are there any other cases?

Craig Dufty is a multiple State Champion in WA (Australia). These days his son, Liam, frequently wins the string course.

Cool! I discussed this with Ross and we couldn't think of any other parent-child Cdn elite champions
combinations. Then checked orienteering Canada database to confirm that. Very cool this happened on back to back days. Yeah adventuregirl! and yukongiraffe

Don't think anyone's done that combination in Australia: we've had parent/child combinations who have been in WOC teams (Mace and Jasmine Neve, daughters of Sue Key), but I don't think either Mace or Jasmine have won an Australian elite championship yet. (There's also multiple MTBO WOC champion Adrian Jackson, son of 1970s/1980s WOC team member Carolyn).

there have certainly been some familiar surnames appearing in recent JWOCs (and even WOCs now). Unfortunately this only serves to remind me how quickly the last 20 years have passed....

Ari, Outi and their son Topi all are Finnish champions (and WOC medalist).

In 1976 Val Robinson won the NZ open womens title. In 1993 Tania Robinson won her first elite title, and went on doing so for over 15 years. Looking at JWOC just now, I see the names Martensson and Berglia there, could be some other examples coming up..

Blair, both Carolyn and Adrian are also Australian MTBO champions and national MTBO reps but then the competition isn't as big. Carolyn won some of her Aus titles around the same time as Adrian!

Do you think tooms and MtbJen can hang on long enough for Edmund?

At State level in Western Australia it's been done several times already (Most obviously by Tony McNulty and Anthea Feaver --> Both Oscar and Henry McNulty). I wouldn't go against Blair on the national scene for real... I mean foot orienteering..

Tooms isn't that old; it just seems that way.

I would have thought this is quite common in a small family sport like orienteering. In cycling, I can think of various parent-child combinations who were both national champion: Eddy and Axel Merckx (Belgium), Stephen and Nicolas Roche (Ireland), Davis and Taylor Phinney and mother Connie Carpenter (USA), Johnny and Andy & Frank Schleck (Luxembourg). Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands) is junior world champion, not yet a senior national champion, but both his father Adrie van der Poel and his grandfather Raymond Poulidor were.

The way "current" Australian elites are popping out babies JWOC team for 17 year's time is almost selected.