For only the third time in forty years, Britain is hosting the World Orienteering Championships in 2015. A group of us, all currently drawn from TVOC, have been successful in bidding to play a significant and high profile role in this major undertaking near Inverness in Scotland next summer. We will be responsible for staffing the finish zone at all WOC events. We would love to have a few more in our team. This therefore an invitation for anyone else from SCOA to come and join us.
Many will remember working with the SCOA team which undertook a similar but larger task when WOC was last hosted in the UK. On that occasion, our duties included the (manual) timing too. This time, that is being handled by Oxford resident Jon Marsden, with whom we will work closely.
We will need two groups of volunteers: -
• A core of at least seven orienteers who will need to work on all races to try to achieve a consistent approach.
• A second group of about sixteen at any one time which can vary in composition from race to race and can include non-orienteering family and friends. The essential quality required by many here will be assertiveness!
Tasks: -
At the moment, it is anticipated that the core group will be dealing directly with the world’s elite orienteers, keeping them moving through the finish area, ensuring that they download, collecting SI cards and issuing splits. Tasks for the more flexible group will probably include controlling access to the finish, mixed and map mark-up zones by coaches, VIPs, press and other media as well as assisting with doping control and safeguarding water & supervising its collection by athletes.
Most volunteer helpers will probably wish to compete in some or all of the (almost) concurrent Scottish 6-Day Event. This will be possible for all six days for all but the core group who will be unable to compete on one day. (See website http://www.scottish6days.com/2015/ for details of possible clashes, locations etc.)
As our role is very much in the public/televisual eye, we will have to wear uniform to look good (better?) on TV.
If members of any other SCOA clubs wish to be involved, please let us know very soon as well as filling in your details at http://www.woc2015.org/volunteers#mc_embed_signup
Accommodation is already getting booked up, and you are advised to make arrangements soon. Further details can be found at http://www.woc2015.org/
Glynis & Jon Wheatcroft wheatcroft [at] waitrose.com (wheatcroft[at]waitrose[dot]com)
