EASTER 4-DAY — DAY 1— THROUGH THE EYES OF AN M45A’er When reading in the programme that the starter may exclude competitors who were inadequately clad, one wondered what we were in for. Much to our surprise Easter in the Wellington region was near perfect. Sunny, dry days made for long and enthusiastic post-mortems on […]

WOW what a busy July we have had – and we haven’t even had a Board meeting! Our athletes have been racing hard at the NZ Secondary School Champs (thanks PAPO for organising). We also have had athletes competing overseas in Genoa, Italy for WOC – check out Orienteering Wellington’s club post about one of the World Champs knock-out sprint semi-final […]

The four day Secondary Schools Orienteering and Rogaine Championships kicked off in various locations around Ōtautahi Christchurch in July. The national orienteering championships marked an important milestone as it follows an announcement by the International Orienteering Federation that Canterbury, New Zealand will host the Junior World Orienteering Championships in 2029. Many of the secondary school […]

It was a huge turnout for the 2026 Orienteering Big Day Out with a  large increase in participation in spite of an initial postponement due to bad weather. Over 600 Primary and Intermediate school students from eight schools in the Taupo and surrounding districts took part in an orienteering big day out with rogaining events […]

The Canterbury Schools Orienteering Festival is an annual event and the 2026 event will also incorporate the South Island Secondary Schools Orienteering Champs. If you’re a school-aged student attending a primary, intermediate or secondary school, or you’re homeschooled, in Canterbury or beyond, you’re invited to be part of this exciting schools orienteering festival. With a range of […]

The Hodgson sisters received the inspiring ‘Team that stands out from the rest award’ at the New Zealand Secondary School Orienteering Championships (NZSSOC). We caught up with the family to hear their reflections on the championships and what else they also love to do when they travel to orienteering events. As a family we love to run, […]

This is the final year these sponored awards will be in this format. around the NZSSOC. Do let us know what you thought of these awards for school athletes, teams and supporters.  Nateva winnerThe NSSOC Nateva Award went to Micah Dunn from Nayland College. His nomination said: “I’d like to nominate Micah Dunn because he […]

Hot off winning three medals the NZ Secondary School Orienteering, PAPO member Luke Jansen was in the winning U18 team at the very first Junior Adventure Racing World Championship (JARMS) with his Canterbury team mate Silas Jones from July 23 to 26, 2026 in Quebec, Canada. Endurance Aventure announced the Black Diamond NZ team as inaugural winners […]

The Great Forest Rogaine continues to evolve with record youth participation. More than 540 competitors took part in this year’s Great Forest Rogaine, reaffirming its place as one of New Zealand’s premier navigation and endurance events. Hosted by Orienteering Bay of Plenty (OBOP), the event once again brought together mountain bikers, rogainers, adventure racers, families […]

The IOF Young Leaders Academy 2026 took place from the 27th of June – 5th of July in Val Di Sole, Italy.  I was lucky enough to attend this year. YLA is run in conjunction with the 5 days of Italy orienteering event which this year had over 2000 participants and 46 nations attending. YLA […]

After the recent JWOC29 Announcement we wasted no time asking the Gustafsson family what they thought of the terrain around Christchurch. They were touring around New Zealand and their family joined in the New Zealand Secondary School Orienteering Champs events in July.  1. Where are you from in Sweden and what made you want to come to […]

Blair Trewin has been appointed Vice President of the International Orienteering Federation for the period 2026-2030. At the 33rd IOF General Assembly, Blair Trewin was elected unanimously to become Vice President of the organisation. Blair has demonstrated great leadership throughout the years as president of Orienteering Australia and has proved himself as a valuable member of […]

Despite the shortest day just ticking over, orienteers are not hibernating! From now over the next month we have athletes over in Europe representing New Zealand at EYOC (European Youth Champs), JWOC and WOC. No doubt there will be some bleary eyed orienteers at work who have been up through the night to watch GPS dots on […]

The 2026 European Youth Orienteering Champs saw sixteen young New Zealand athletes traveling to Nova Gorcia, Slovenia. The competition took place from 25th to 27th June. The team was coached by Kieren Woods and managed by Sonja Herrmann and, Kevin and Clodagh Hoare. We arrived two days before the competition in order to adjust to […]

The King’s Birthday orienteering events kicked off on Saturday 30 May in Woodhill Forest South with the Long event. Planner Dave Crofts, with Jeff Greenwood as A Grade Controller, crafted a course that blended demanding legs with testing control placements. Dave flagged that some seemingly straightforward areas had hidden challenges – particularly a section of […]

A small group of kiwi athletes attended Jukola/Venla this year. The event was hosted one hour east of Helsinki in Kotka, over 1,800 teams, raced in seven stages. The men lined up to start the race at 11pm, in the dark and non-stop rain. Yet more were flocked in the airfield / rally circuit for the arena. The start of women’s race had added […]

New Zealand’s most popular and one of the longest standing Rogaines is back for 2026! What is the 2026 GFR? The Great Forest Rogaine has several categories: 3 hour foot, 3 hour mtb and for 2026, we are introducing a new adventure category to replace the 6 hour mountain bike. This new category will be a combination of foot […]

Maze-O has been used as an introduction to orienteering in  South Australia as a programme for the community funded by Orienteering Australia’s Moira Whiteside Bequest. It consists of orange traffic cones with custom S.I. units that fit over a cone.  Since October 2025 it has been used around South Australia at a range of community and school […]

It’s pretty exciting with the international orienteering season kicking off. The second World Cup race took place over the weekend and saw our relay team finish 14th, just behind the Australian team.  Luckily overall our team ranking remains ahead of Australia. Auckland Orienteering Club hosted the Triple Crown & King’s Birthday Competition over the long weekend […]

More than 500 competitors tackled the spectacular sand dune terrain at Leighton’s Farm, South Head, for a compact but deceptively demanding rogaine that rewarded smart navigation as much as speed. The condensed map and tightly packed controls, designed by 14-year-old Course Planner Quinn Harris kept competitors making tactical decisions from start to finish. A remarkable […]

In mid May, competitors from across Canterbury, Nelson and even Wellington battled it out at the UCOC Ultralong on the tough slopes of Laidmore. UCOC is the University of Canterbury Orienteering Club. The course setter and controller (Zefa Fa’avae and Riley Croxford) planned courses that were technically challenging, with fine navigation amongst the rocks the […]

The Southland Schools Orienteering Championships were held on the 17th of May, a perfect autumn day, at the Otatara dunes near Invercargill, with approximately 160 competitors from 19 schools turning up to face the challenge. The competition was spiced up this year by a change of venue to allow for the addition of a true […]

The HB Schools Middle Championships at Craggy Range on Sunday 24th May 2026 was a fantastic day of orienteering, with 76 students taking part in calm, dry weather conditions. The spectator zone allowed families, teachers and supporters to watch the students out on the course, creating a great atmosphere throughout the event. The course was […]

The 2026 New Zealand Mountain Bike Orienteering Championships, hosted by Orienteering Bay of Plenty over 16–17 May, delivered drama, laughs and some serious racing in good conditions. More than 100 competitors enjoyed near-perfect weather across three championship events, testing riders in three very different ways. The fine weather was a welcome contrast to what had […]

Peninsula and Plains Orienteers welcomes you to the 27th annual Heights of Winter, to be held in Banks Peninsula, Canterbury on Saturday 13 June 2026. With several sponsors on board this is going to be a fun event very close to Christchurch but well away in the hills to be remote.  Two courses: The 12 hour will run from […]

Keep your eye on O-Zone for the Auckland Triple Crown results during, and after, King’s Birthday Weekend.  ATC cumulative times and overall placings will be on O-Zone as it publishes results automatically.  O-Zone will also be calculating the points for the National Orienteering League (NOL). Be aware that these will not be the final season […]

Dates: Friday 18 December 2026 (late afternoon arrival) – Sunday 20 December 2026 (2pm departure)Venue: Teapot Valley Christian Camp, Brightwater, Tasman: I have pre booked and confirmed. Hosted by: Nelson Orienteering ClubOpen to: Primary and intermediate-age children, parent-supervised (1 parent per 3 children minimum): year 4/5 to year 8. Includes: 3 nights’ accommodation, all meals, volunteer-led coaching, parent […]

It’s been so great connecting with many of you over the last month, at nationals, and also at the AGM on Wednesday. It’s always great to get your viewpoints and feedback and as I mentioned at the AGM, please get in touch with any of the Board, Christo (General Manager) or any of the ONZ […]

The NZ team in the sprint faced a very technical start where the tight alleyways, steps and artificial barriers made it difficult to get any rhythm. The courses then opened up with a long 1km route choice leg across town which Laura was very pleased to pick and execute well. Her exceptional 30th placing also […]

“If you want flat terrain – get on the water.” Wellington orienteer Dick Dinsdale summed up the 2026 New Zealand Orienteering Championships before a single control had been punched. The Sprint at Rathkeale College was fast and technical, mixing open grounds with tight bush tracks to finish. Joseph Lynch continued his strong Oceania 2026 form […]