Orienteering Canada, formerly known as the Canadian Orienteering Federation (COF), is the

governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ...

of orienteering in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. It is recognized by the

International Orienteering Federation The International Orienteering Federation (IOF) is the international governing body of the sport of orienteering. The IOF head office is located in Karlstad, Sweden. The IOF governs four orienteering disciplines: foot orienteering, mountain bi ...

, of which it is a member.

History

Orienteering Canada, was founded in 1967 as the Canadian Orienteering Federation and initially consisted of three member associations, those of Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia. The following year, Orienteering Canada became a member of the

and the first Canadian Orienteering Championships were held in

Gatineau Park Gatineau Park (french: Parc de la Gatineau) is a federal park located in the Outaouais, Outaouais region of Quebec, Canada. Administered by the National Capital Commission as part of the National Capital Region (Canada), National Capital Region, ...

, Quebec on August 10. In 1972, Canada sent its first team to the

World Orienteering Championships The World Orienteering Championships (or WOC for short) is an annual orienteering event organized by the International Orienteering Federation. The first World Championships was held in Fiskars, Finland in 1966. They were held biennially up to 2 ...

(WOC) in Staré Splavy,

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. By 1975, Orienteering Canada consisted of 8 provincial associations. In 1976, Orienteering Quebec organized "O' Ring", the first international orienteering competition held outside of Europe which attracted over 900 participants. In 2012, the organization formally changed its name to Orienteering Canada. On top of organizing the Canadian Orienteering Championships each year, Orienteering Canada has hosted several major orienteering competitions including the Orienteering World Cup (1978, 1990, 1992), the Asia-Pacific Orienteering Championships (1990, 2002), and the North American Orienteering Championships which they have hosted every four years since 1973.

Affiliated clubs

Current

*Chapter of Orienteering New Brunswick

Defunct

References

External links

Official website of Orienteering Canada
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canadian Orienteering Federation International Orienteering Federation members Orienteering