Between October 13th and 18th, the Central American and Caribbean Orienteering Championships were held in Colombia. The events were held in the cities of Bogotá, Zipaquirá and Guatavita.
Between the 13th and 15th of October, a clinic was held with the aim of spreading orienteering in schools and universities in accordance with the objectives of the IOF. There were lectures by representatives of Caribbean countries and a basic presentation of mapping small areas for teachers. The clinic was organized by the Colombian Orienteering Federation – FCO – with direct support from the representatives of the IOF Latin America Regional Development Group; Ronaldo Ameida, José Angel Poblete and José Fernando Rueda. Support for carrying out the Clinic was provided by the Colombian Olympic Committee. All this initial work made possible the exchange between the countries and expanded future possibilities in the development of school activities in the region.
On the 16th, 17th and 18th of October, orienteering competitions were held in middle distance and sprint, in which the second and third courses in the cities Zipaquirá and Guatavita, stood out for the high technical quality of the maps and courses. These days of competition could only take place thanks to the work of IOF Adviser José Angel Poblete and the FCO team represented by its president, José Fernando Rueda.
After the last day of competition, workshops with educational institutions continued. The members of the Regional Development Group of Latin America split and continued the presentation of the sport in different regions in Colombia. The experiences showed a great potential for the development of orienteering in the region, both with the existence of suitable areas for orienteering and the available human resources. There is reason to hope that in the medium term Colombia will progress in the development of orienteering and that it will become a regional reference.
The work carried out in Colombia is part of a larger work that is being carried out bit by bit across Latin America by IOF’s hardworking Latin America Regional Development Team.
