The O-Ringen (previously called the “Swedish 5 days”) is an orienteering competition that takes place annually in different areas of Sweden. Orienteers from all over the world come to the competition. For orienteers around the world a trip to the O'ringen 5-days is their Mecca.
This race attracts significant media coverage in Sweden and winning O-Ringen is often considered second only to the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in prestige.
The competition takes place in July, and takes place over 5 days, where every active day is a competition stage. Competitors are assigned start times for the first four stages of the race, but on the fifth and final stage a "chasing start" is used. In a chasing start the overall leader in each class starts first and the remaining
competitor
Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indivi ...
s start according to the total time they trail. This means that the first runner over the finish line on the final stage is the winner.
History
The O-Ringen was started in 1965 in
Denmark
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Blekinge
Blekinge (, old da, Bleking) is one of the traditional Swedish provinces (), situated in the southern coast of the geographic region of Götaland, in southern Sweden. It borders Småland, Scania and the Baltic Sea. It is the country's secon ...
by Peo Bengtsson and Sivar Nordstöm. 156 participants attended the first and the participation levels have steadily increased since. Up until today the highest participant level was in 1985 in
Dalarna
Dalarna () is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in central Sweden. English exonyms for it are Dalecarlia () and the Dales.
Dalarna adjoins Härjedalen, Hälsingland, Gästrikland, Västmanland and Värmland. It is also bordered by Norwa ...
/
Falun
Falun () is a city and the seat of Falun Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 37,291 inhabitants in 2010. It is also the capital of Dalarna County. Falun forms, together with Borlänge, a metropolitan area with just over 100,000 inhabitan ...
were there were 25 021 participants.
The O-Ringen was included in the World Cup orienteering series in 1998, 2007 and 2008.
In 2009 there were prize money in the Elite series, the main classes for both the men and the women, totalling to half a million kronor. The final result in the junior elite classes will count towards the Silva Junior Cup.
From 2008
multi-sport
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of interna ...
has been represented at the competition in the form of the O-Ringen Multi. The competition on the Tuesday will be a part of the
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
Multi-sport
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of interna ...
Cup.
The O-Ringen Academy is a training program which consists of three sections; International, Leadership and Sports. The International section focuses on training orienteers from all over the world who want to learn more about orienteering in order to develop the sport in their home countries. The Leadership section is a leadership training course in the form of seminars and speeches. The Sports section is more concerned with the physical side with training camps of different sorts, including a week for juniors before the O-Ringen.
Records
*The first ever stage of the
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
5-Days was held in
Denmark
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, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark
, establish ...
.
*
Ulla Lindkvist
Ulla Lindkvist (30 August 1939 – 6 August 2015) was a Swedish orienteering competitor, and the first individual female world champion in this sport. She won the 1966 and 1968 Individual World Orienteering Championships,Lars Lönnkvist has won the men's class four times
List of sporting events in Sweden {{Short description, none
This is a list of sporting events in Sweden that are held on an annual basis.
Open to everyone
* Alliansloppet - 16, 32 & 48km roller skiing event in Trollhättan World biggest rollerski race
* Broloppet - Swedish/Danish r ...