Work for WUC Orienteering 2022 kicks off with logo presentation

L-R: Fritz Aebi, Event Director; Patrick Krähenbühl; Salome Weber; Patrik Grossenbacher; Christoph Schilter; Jost Hammer, Technical Director; Thomas Kämpfer; Jürg Schaller; Michael Mathys; Fabian Borner

A kick-off event was held for the 2022 World University Championship Orienteering, that is scheduled to be held in Switzerland, in August 2022. 

On the occasion of the kick-off event, the association ‘WUC Orienteering 2022’ was founded and the proposed logo was presented. The Championship will be organised in cooperation with Swiss University Sports and Swiss Orienteering in the week of 17-21 August 2022. Five competitions for students from over 30 nations will take place in the Biel-Bienne and Oberaargau area. The main competition centres are the city of Biel-Bienne and the Swiss Federal Institute of Sport Magglingen SFISM. The two Swiss national championships over the middle distance, and the relay, will also be integrated into this event.

FISU First Vice President and Managing Director of Swiss University Sports Leonz Eder, addressed the online meeting and supported the project. He thanked the initiative of the organising committee and in particular Event Director Fritz Aebi, who is also Executive Director of impOLs (Organising Committee) as well as Jost Hammer, the Technical Director.

“Switzerland is one of the world’s leading nations in orienteering, and Swiss University Sports has also always been very successful in the World University Championships by winning lots of medals,” said Eder. “This is why the motivation for Swiss athletes to once again do well in title competitions at home is very high.”

“Switzerland has hosted two World University Championships, in 1980 in St. Gallen and in 1994 in Fiesch,” he added. “Moreover, at the Lucerne 2021 Winter Universiade next December, ski orienteering is on the programme in Lenzerheide. Then, the 2022 WUC will be followed by European Universities Championship 2023 in St. Gallen. I am particularly pleased that thanks to the good cooperation between Swiss University Sports, Swiss Orienteering and FISU as well as EUSA, important title competitions will once again take place in Switzerland, which is also the headquarter seat of FISU.”

As pointed out by the FISU First Vice-President, Swiss athletes have traditionally done well in Orienteering at FISU events. During the 2018 Championship, the Swiss squad won medals in six events out of nine held. They took first place in the Mixed Team Relay and the Men’s Long Distance events, one silver medal in the Women’s Sprint Distance and three bronze medals in Women’s Long distance, as well as the Men’s and Women’s Relays.

Two year earlier, in 2016, the Swiss team had won two silver medals in the Men’s 13.8 and 3.6 kms, and two bronze medals in Men’s Team and Men’s 3.6 kms.