Ski-O National Team Archives - Orienteering USA

The US Ski Orienteering Team Starts Program Accelerate 2033 and a fundraiser as the first step!

*Coach Carl Fey, Euell Browne, Erik Fey, Liam Browne, and Mark Fey at European, Youth Ski Orienteering Championships Posio, Finland March 2025*

Orienteering USA’s vision is to create a single, unified orienteering community. A community committed to filling the forests, the woods, the parks, and the fields with enthusiastic orienteers. We are on a mission to enhance that vision on the snow! Program Accelerate 2033 has launched. This is a step by step plan to develop elite US ski orienteers. The goal is to have at least two American athletes in the top 10 at the World Ski Orienteering
Championships by 2033.

Honestly, it has been a while since the US garnered much attention in the world of SkiO. In 2011 Alison Crocker earned 8th place World Ski Orienteering Championships: the best ever American result! Our initial step to connect with those days was in March 2025. The youth team competed in Posio, Finland. Under the knowledge and enthusiasm of Coach Carl Fey two sets of American brothers represented the USA: Erik & Mark Fey with Liam & Euell Browne. Erik led the way with historic results, placing 5th in the long, 6th in the sprint, 6th in the middle, and anchoring the US boys to 6th in the relay—marking the best-ever individual finish by a non-European male in a major international SkiO event!

The USA’s 2025-2026 Junior SkiO team has grown from four to six athletes. They are fundraising for their upcoming travel to Luleå, Sweden where they will compete at Junior World and European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships. Donations will be used to help the team to take part in the races in Sweden and Program Accelerate 2033.

Our six athletes are seeking pledges for each training kilometer (km) covered by ski, roller ski, or foot during the month of December, 2025. Individual athletes receive pledges and all money raised goes to the overall team fund. Pledges and donations can be made at 99pledges.com. Donate $25 or more and we will send you an “Orienteering USA Junior SkiO Supporter” sticker! Very generously, Larry and Sara Mae Berman are matching donations for our first $2000!! We are very thankful for them helping make each donation make a greater impact.

Donate

Learn more about Orienteering USA SkiO.

We look forward to an amazing season!

For more information please contact: Coach Carl Fey at carlffey@nullgmail.com or Kara Browne at binear@nullyahoo.com, PO Box 8041, Kalispell, MT 59904.

US Ski Orienteering Team to the 2026 World SkiO Champs Selected

Orienteering USA is pleased to announce that the US Ski Orienteering Team
Executive Steering Committee has completed selection of the US Team to the 2026 World
Championships in Rusutsu, Hokkaido, Japan, March 1–7, 2026. The following
people have been selected:

Men
Chris Burnham, Green Mountain Orienteering Club
Josh Eaton, Empire Orienteering Club

Women
Tamra Kornfield, Arctic Orienteering Club

For more information about the US Ski-Orienteering Team please contact US Team
Coach Carl Fey at carlffey@nullgmail.com.

US Teams to 2026 Junior World and European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships Announced

Orienteering USA is pleased to announce the teams to represent the US in the 2026 Junior World Ski Orienteering Championships and the 2026 European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships. Both competitions will take place February 4 – 8, 2026, in Luleå, Sweden.

The team was selected by the US Ski Orienteering Team Executive Committee. It is especially exciting that four of the six athletes selected come from Grizzly Orienteering Club in Montana, which is quickly becoming a hub of US ski orienteering talent.

US Team for the 2026 Junior World Ski-Orienteering Championships
Liam Browne, Grizzly Orienteering Club
Erik Fey, Rochester Orienteering Club and NSK

US Team for the 2026 European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships
Boys Team
Euell Browne, Grizzly Orienteering Club
Espen Chitty, Grizzly Orienteering Club
Mark Fey, Rochester Orienteering Club and Nydalens SK

Girls Team
Caroline Chitty, Grizzly Orienteering Club

For more information about the US Ski-Orienteering Team please contact US Team
Coach Carl Fey at carlffey@nullgmail.com.

US Ski-O Team seeking applications for 2026!

The IOF Ski-O schedule for the winter of 2026 is out now!

The Ski-O World Championships will take place in Japan March 1-7, 2026; the Junior World Championships, Youth Championships, and a round of World Cup races will take place in Sweden February 5-8, 2026, and World Masters and a round of World Cup races will take place in Bulgaria January 21-25, 2026.

Anyone can race in World Masters Ski-Orienteering Championships. Applications to race for the US in any of the other ski-o races should be sent to US Ski-O ESC Chair Adrian Owens (aowens@nullsterlingcollege.edu) by September 30, 2025.

Applications for juniors and seniors must include: race results (ski-O, foot-O, X-C skiing), Training done for the past year (preferably in a standard like Strava or Attackpoint), training plans for the coming year, a brief statement of interest about joining the team, and biographical info (birth date, citizenship status, gender, Orienteering USA membership number as membership is a requirement to be on the US Ski-O Team). Questions about the races or the US Ski-O Team more broadly can be addressed to Adrian or US Ski-O Team Coach Carl Fey (carlffey@nullgmail.com).

Applications should be sent to ESC chair Adrian Owens by email before Sept 30, 2025.

Map from the 2009 World Ski Orienteering Championships

US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team Wraps up an exciting week at EYSOC!

US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team: Coach Carl Fey, Euell Browne, Erik Fey, Liam Browne, and Mark
Fey.

The US Youth Ski Orienteering Team delivered record-breaking performances at the 2025 European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships, which serves as the de facto World Youth SkiO Championships.

Erik Fey led the team with historic results, placing 5th in the long, 6th in the sprint, 6th in the middle, and anchoring the US to 6th in the relay—marking the best-ever individual finish by a male non-European in a major international skiO event. [Ali Crocker has the best ever American result, with a 4th place in a 2011 World Cup race.] He narrowly missed 4th in the long by just four seconds, pushing to the limit in the final stretch. “I really wanted a top-three finish, but I’m proud of my performance and our growing US SkiO youth team,” Erik reflected.

*Erik Fey on his way to 5th place in the European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships long distance race.*

Liam Browne (22nd), Euell Browne (24th), and Mark Fey (25th) also delivered strong results in the long distance race, with Euell edging Mark by five seconds.. The Browne brothers, competing in their first international skiO event, impressed many, showcasing the rising strength of Grizzly Orienteering Club in Montana and the US SkiO program.

Liam called the experience “amazing,” crediting Erik and Finnish champion Niklas Hirvilahti for inspiring his improvement. When reflecting back on the week of races Euell Brown said, “It was a great privilege to race for my country at European Youth Champs. My navigation got better with each race, and by the long event I felt much better making decisions on the go. I am very thankful
for encouragement of my team: Mark, Erik, Liam and Coach Carl!”

With Erik and Liam moving up to the junior category next year, the US Youth SkiO Team seeks new talent. Interested athletes and media inquiries can contact Coach Carl Fey at carlffey@nullgmail.com.

Erik Fey Finishes 6th in the Sprint at the European Youth Ski-O Champs!

The US Boys Youth Ski-Orienteering Team followed up their strong result from yesterday’s relay with top finishes again today in the Sprint race at the European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships in Posio, Finland. American Erik Fey, age 16, placed sixth which, to the best of our knowledge, is the first time a male athlete representing a country outside of Europe has placed in the top six in an individual race at a major international ski-orienteering competition.

When asked about the race Erik said, “I am very happy to place in the top six today which was my goal for these races, but goals and dreams do not always come true. I have been training hard working towards this step by step for a number of years. I felt good and skied really fast today, but perhaps I went a little too fast. Thus, I made a few small mistakes which I hope I can eliminate in the remaining races by keeping my heart rate a little bit lower.” The race was won by Marek Lesak of Czech Republic ahead of Veeti Vippola from Finland in second place and Joakhim Savinanein of Finland in 3^rd place.

Euell Browne, a strong skier from Grizzly Orienteering Club in Montana, also skied especially well today. He was the US’s second fastest skier coming in 22^nd place– a very impressive result, especially considering that this is only Euell’s second major international ski-orienteering race (yesterday was his first international ski-orienteering race). Euell was followed by older brother Liam Browne in 24^th place and Erik’s younger brother Mark Fey in 26^th place. These all represent solid performances for the US.

The races continue on Saturday with the medium distance race and end on Sunday, March 23^rd with the long race. You can follow the US Ski-Orienteering Team’s results at: Liveservices – Lapin Lumirastit & ESOC, JWSOC, EYSOC 2025. Enquires from the press or messages of good luck to the US Ski-O Team can be sent to: carlffey@nullgmail.com

Historic 6th Place in European Youth Ski-O Champs for US Boys!

The US Boys Youth Ski-Orienteering Team finished 6^th today in the relay at the European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships. This is the best relay result for the US ever at a European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships, which this year are taking place in Posio, Finland, far North of the arctic circle, March 20-23, 2025.

*The US Boys Youth Ski-Orienteering Team at the Relay Awards Ceremony*.

Erik Fey skied the first leg, getting the team off to a good start. Erik finished third on his leg, one minute and 18 seconds behind the leader and 10 seconds behind second place. Erik’s solid result motivated his relay teammates Liam Browne from Montana and younger brother Mark Fey, who both skied solidly to help the team to earn an impressive and record-breaking sixth place for the US. It is especially impressive that this was Liam’s first international ski-orienteering race. Results in ski-orienteering seem to be influenced by genetics as the US Youth Boys’ Team consists of two sets of brothers this year. Liam’s younger brother Euell skied the first leg of the relay for the second US team (which was incomplete) and was only slightly behind Mark and Liam–a very impressive result for his first international ski-orienteering race. The race was won by Finland followed by Sweden and Czech Republic.

*The 2025 Boys Youth European Championships Relay Map*

The races took place in an area that included a large lake and much marshland as well as some steep, but rather short, hills (see the above map). The race finished with a tough steep 20 meter climb to the finish which was difficult for many athletes tired at the end of their races, but the US’s last leg skier Mark Fey looked strong as he sprinted up the hill to the finish. Liam and Euell come from a strong background in cross-country skiing and come from the Grizzly Orienteering Club in Montana, which has been producing an increasing number of strong orienteers and ski-orienteers in recent years. The Browne brothers also ski for the strong Glacier Nordic Ski Team.

When asked about his race Erik said, “I skied a solid race today and am pleased I stayed calm and in control which was our game plan.” US Ski-O Team Coach Carl Fey commented, “It is great to see that the US Ski-O Youth Team is becoming stronger and deeper than in past years. I am really impressed with how well the Browne brothers did today given that this was their first international race. They clearly have much talent, and I expect them to have a great future in ski-orienteering. It was also good to see that hard training by Erik is paying off allowing him to ski a very good first leg for the relay team.”

The US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team would like to thank their main sponsor Berman Orienteering Supply for their important support. The races continue tomorrow with a sprint race followed by a medium length race on Saturday and a long race on Sunday. You can follow the US Ski-O Team’s results at: Liveservices – Lapin Lumirastit & ESOC, JWSOC, EYSOC 2025. Enquires from the press or messages of good luck to the US Ski-O Team can be sent to: carlffey@nullgmail.com

US Ski Orienteering Team Selected

The US Ski-Orienteering Team’s Executive Steering Committee is pleased to announce that it has selected the team for the 2025 World Cup based on past results and potential. This is a rebuilding year for the US Ski-O Team so only two people have been selected to the senior team. This year the World Cup races will take place in Norway, Germany, and Finland. The US Senior team has opted not to race in the races in Finland this year.

Chris Burnham of Stowe, VT was named to the team. Chris comes from a strong skiing background including an impressive 2^nd place finish in the American Brikebeiner classic ski marathon in 2022. He is back to international ski-orienteering after taking a two-year break to focus on setting back-country distance skiing records like last year setting the record for the fastest time skiing the largely ungroomed 300km Catamount Trail in Vermont in 6 days, 10 hours, and 31 minutes. When not skiing, Chris is an underwater robot programmer.

Chris will be joined on the team by veteran ski-orienteer Adrian Owens of Craftsbury, VT who also orienteers for Green Mountain Orienteering Club. Adrian was the US’s top performer on the US senior team last year at World Championships. Adrian hopes to use his many years of ski-orienteering experience to ensure that he has clean races. Adrian, who is an outdoor enthusiast and has great concern for the environment even living in an environmentally-friendly home, excels at producing consistent stable race results even in difficult conditions and having good endurance.

For additional information contact: Carl Fey, US Ski-O Team Coach at: carlffey@nullgmail.com

US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team Selected for 2025 European Championships in Finland

The US Ski-Orienteering Executive Steering Committee is pleased to announce that the US Team for the 2025 European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships has been selected based on past results and perceived potential. The races will take place March 19-23, 2025 in Posio, Finland well north of the Artic Circle. One must be 17 or under to race in European Championships and since there are no World Championships for youth, this is the major international ski-orienteering event for people under the age of 17 world-wide. The 2025 team to European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships consists of: Erik Fey (16 years old), Mark Fey (13 soon 14), Liam Browne (16), and Euell Browne (14 soon 15). There is great excitement in the US ski-orienteering community since most expect that this team will be the strongest youth ski-orienteering boys team that the US has ever fielded.

Erik Fey at the 2024 Open Nordic Ski-Orienteering Championships in Estonia

Erik Fey will be looking to improve upon his 14^th place at European Championships last year. He will be joined on the team this year for the first time by his younger brother Mark Fey who hopes to have solid results. Erik and Mark both have extensive ski-orienteering experience and currently live in Oslo, Norway and do orienteering and ski-orienteering for the strong Nydalens Skiklub which has other strong ski-orienteers as members such as 2024 Middle Distance and Sprint Relay World Champion in Ski-Orienteering Anna Ulvensøen. They also actively do cross-country skiing for Hemming IL. Their US club is Rochester Orienteering Club.

This year the US team is full of brothers and the Feys will be joined for the first time by Liam Browne and Euell Browne of Kalispell, MT. Liam is a strong experienced cross-country skier who qualified to be part of the Intermountain Division Ski Team to US Junior Nationals in cross-country skiing last year. He and his younger brother Euell are members of the Glacier Nordic Comp Pro Team which ensures they have extensive regular training year-round. Great lovers of outdoor endurance sports, Liam and Euell were attracted to ski-orienteering thanks to a ski-orienteering race organized in nearby Missoula, MT by Boris Granovskiy and other members of Grizzly Orienteering three years ago. Since then, they have been excited about orienteering and ski-orienteering and rapidly gaining experience and strong results mostly in their area. They are now interested in taking their ski-orienteering racing to the next level and look forward to seeing how they stack up internationally. Look out world, here they come! They are now members of the relatively new, but rapidly becoming quite strong, Grizzly Orienteering Club which would probably win the award for the most improved orienteering club in the US in the last several years if there was such an award.

Liam Browne at the 2024 US Cross-Country Skiing Junior Nationals

Unfortunately, it is expensive to travel to and race at European Championships. As such, donations to support our increasingly strong US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team would be greatly appreciated and can be made online at orienteeringusa.org. Please note that your donation is for the US Youth Ski-Orienteering Team if it is. For more information about the US Ski-Orienteering Team please contact Team Coach Carl Fey at carlffey@nullgmail.com.

TeamUSA Ski-O Competes in Austria

This press release was originally prepared by US Ski-O Team Coach Carl Fey with edits by Orienteering USA. Photos courtesy Carl Fey.

The 2024 World Ski Orienteering Championships (WSOC) are taking place in Ramsau, Austria from January 23-27. The Junior World Ski Orienteering Championships (JWSOC) and European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships (EYSOC) are being held concurrently on the same maps. The US National Team has skiers competing in all three events.

Ramsau is famous for its Dachstein glacier which is the most famous place in the world for summer skiing and is also a popular place for skiing in the winter with an extensive network of cross-country ski trails and beautiful mountain scenery. The weather conditions have been challenging with warm weather and rain resulting in melting and slow snow making it difficult for organizers and skiers alike. The organizers had to change some of courses less than 24 hours before the races.

US veteran ski orienteer Adrian Owens (GMOC) has had the best US result in the men’s World Championship races this week where he has had a friendly battle with fellow US team member Ari Ofsevit (CSU). To get to the start of the sprint race skiers took a chairlift resulting in fast conditions being mostly downhill through an extensive network of trials requiring quick decisions at high speed. In the sprint race, won by Jörgen Baklid (NOR), Adrian Owens placed 63rd with Ari Ofsevit close behind in 64th separated by a mere 21 seconds.

The grueling pursuit race was a a mass-start long race run as a one-man relay with three loops and Jörgen Baklid once again taking the win. Adrian was 54th and Ari was 55th. When asked about the race Adrian said, “I went and fought and fought on the course and finally made it to the end. There were really a lot of tough climbs today.” In the middle distance Adrian Owens was 59th place and Ari Ofsevit was 61st. When asked about the races in Ramsau US skier Ari Ofsevit replied, “Our hosts here in Ramsau have done an admiral job in somewhat adverse conditions. The long and middle distance races took us through many fields and forests with significant climb before an exhilarating downhill into the stadium”.

The US was represented by Alex Merka (QOC) in the Women’s Junior World Championships. This was Alex’s debut in international ski-o racing. She ended up 33rd in the sprint, 30th in the long race where she showed off great determination and stamina, and had her best race in the middle distance finishing 33rd. When asked about her races she said, “After the sprint race, which was skied in a blinding snowstorm, it was nice to have a sunny day for the long course, but that produce slow snow. I have discovered that long courses in ski-orienteering are really tough physically. I am happy that myself and my skis are durable.”

The US was represented by Erik Fey (ROC) in the Boy’s European Youth Ski-Orienteering Championships. While not quite the results Erik had hoped for, he had impressive results for the US with a 14th in the sprint, a 16th in the long, and an 18th in the middle. Erik showed off his skiing speed staying near the front for the first five controls in the long mass-start race, however, he was not able to turn this into the results he had hoped for. Erik said, “This was my first time to race in the hilly Alps which was a good experience but created very different orienteering route choices from what I am used to. It inspires me to be here, and I will train even harder for next year.”

The racing concludes with the relay races on January 27th. Races have been covered live on TV in several countries and can also be viewed on IOF TV (live or via replay). The team expressed their thanks to the great cooking by US Ski-O Team Cook and motivator Allison Van Akkeren who is the former US Biathlon Team cook and cooked healthy dinners for a hungry team all week. The team also expressed their thanks to US Team Coach Carl Fey for his long days of waxing, support at the races, attending team leaders meetings, and briefing team members in the evening. The US team has often not had a coach at international ski-o races and several team members mentioned this was much appreciated so that they could focus more on racing.

The US Ski-Orienteering Team would like to say a big thank you to Orienteering USA and other supporters this year. The US Ski-O Team hopes to field an even larger team at international races next year. This is only possible with financial support from Orienteering USA and others. Donations, which may be designated for the US Ski-O Team, can be made at: https://orienteeringusa.org/support/

For more information about the US Ski-Orienteering Team or how to qualify, please contact Adrian Owens, Chairperson of the US Ski-O Team Executive Committee at: aowens@nullsterlingcollege.edu