Draft Orienteering Development Model

Review Period through January 31, 2020

The Youth Development Working Group has completed its initial draft of the Orienteering Development Model (ODM), a long-term athlete development model based on the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee’s American Development Model.

The framework document is available for community review and comment here (Google Doc). Please provide feedback either through comments in the document, or by emailing vpyouth@nullorienteeringusa.org by January 31, 2020.


We recognize we are not effective graphic designers.  If you can do better with either (or both) of our graphics, please do so.  The first is embedded in the framework document; the second is available for download here. (Don’t try to open it in Google; it is a PowerPoint file and can only be edited in PowerPoint, although you are also welcome to recreate it in a different file format.) If you have suggestions to share or problems with download, email vpyouth@nullorienteeringusa.org.

Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions!

Tori Campbell
VP, Youth Initiatives
Orienteering USA

Vote for 2019 Competitive Athlete Awards

Trophies

Make your voice heard! Vote for Athlete of the Year, Junior of the Year, Comet, and Team of the Year. The deadline for voting is January 3rd. For more information regarding the program, including previous winners, click here.

Vote Now!

2020 National Team Applications

Application to the National Team is open to all athletes who meet the requirements of the Athlete Agreement and return a signed copy along with the application.  Please note the January 1 deadline for both documents. Documents are linked from the National Team page.

2020 Club Charter Renewal

OUSA Member Clubs,

It’s that time of year again when all affiliated Orienteering USA clubs must renew their club charters. This year we are trying something new by offering an online form where you can enter your club’s renewal information. Doing so means you do not need to mail, or scan and email, the traditional paper form. Those options are still available, but the information will still need to be entered in the online form, so we appreciate clubs who choose the online option. The online form asks for an email address. This email will be used to send you a copy of the information submitted on the form. It will also provide a link to use if you need to change any information.

A reminder that clubs should submit their renewal information and payment by February 1, 2020.

Thanks, and have a great 2020!

Questions? Please email contact@nullorienteeringusa.org.

2020 JWOC Team Selection Criteria

The JTESC has published the Selection Criteria for choosing the team to represent the U.S. at the 2020 Junior World Orienteering Championships, to be held in Turkey from June 27 to July 3.

Selection Criteria1

Being a Junior National Program member is a plus; Junior National Team applications are due Sunday, December 15.

  1. Document no longer available ↩︎

2020 WUOC Applications Due Jan 5

Applications to be considered for a place on the World University Orienteering Championships Team are being accepted through January 5th.

Automatic spots will be award to the winner of the M-21+ and F-21+ categories of the two-day Classic competition at the Georgia Navigator Cup in mid-January. Other team members will be selected by the committee from petitions.

Find out more about this biennial competition, and learn how selection will take place on the WUOC Team page.

Navigation Games Seeking Volunteers

Non-profit Navigation Games (NG), based in Massachusetts, is seeking volunteers to live in the northeast USA and help with our school programs, mid-March to mid-June 2020. Housing will be provided.

We have previously hosted volunteers from Spain, Norway, the Czech Republic, Italy, Sweden and Brazil. With their help, we have built a great program in Cambridge, MA, and are looking to expand it to other school districts.

Check out Violeta’s video about her time living with us!

If you know someone who might be interested, please direct them to this application.

2020 Junior Team Applications

Information about and applications for applying to the National Junior Program (Junior National Team and Junior Development Team) are now posted on the Junior Team page.

Note that applications for the Junior National Team are due December 15, 2019. Development Team applications are accepted throughout the year.

National Junior Program Update

At the end of 2019, Junior National Coach Erin Schirm, and Junior Development Coach Greg Ahlswede, are both stepping down from their coaching roles in the National Junior Program (NJP) to get back to working on their respective career paths. They are not stepping away from coaching altogether, or from being part of the Orienteering USA (OUSA) community. They will remain involved as volunteers at the club and national levels, Erin as the Chair of the Executive Steering Committee (ESC) of the senior National Team and Greg as an elite athlete on the National Team.

The Junior National Team (JNT) program was initiated by the Junior Team Executive Steering Committee (JTESC) in 2012, and the program has since grown and advanced under Erin’s leadership as Junior National Coach (JNC) and as the OUSA Director of Sport Development. The current NJP includes the JNT and the Junior Development Team (JDT) providing the program’s benefits to a growing talent pool of young orienteers. Junior orienteering in the U.S. has made significant progress since 2012, as seen not only in the results of NJP athletes at U.S. and international competitions, but also in the considerable increase in the number of juniors aspiring to and selected for the senior National Team.

Erin and Greg have laid the foundation with an effective coaching philosophy that past and present athletes have engaged with and appreciate, and it is JTESCs intention to continue building on that foundation. Beyond providing coaching, the NJP aims to reduce, as much as possible, the impact from the unique challenges to juniors in this country due to the geographic spread of athletes and low density of events. The NJP is a framework for our junior athletes to work together to create a team environment that encourages competitive excellence, a professional demeanor, and an enthusiastic work ethic. It also provides a strong support network for national and international travel, fundraising, lodging, and other assistance needed to enable our athletes to compete at home and abroad.

We would like to thank Erin and Greg for their dedicated work as coaches and Erin, as the main architect of the NJP. JTESC will need some time to redefine the position of the JNC, with possible further engagement of local and regional coaches as proposed recently by the OUSA Executive Committee. The JNC will provide unity and support so that our juniors are prepared to compete at the highest stages, including the Junior Nationals, the North American Orienteering Championships (NAOC) and at the Junior World Orienteering Championships (JWOC). NJP athletes will meet as teammates at regional and national events and will take advantage of training and coaching opportunities coordinated for them through the efforts of JTESC and the JNC in cooperation with regional coaches, clubs, and the community of NJP supporters.

We would also like to thank former JNT and NJP athletes who have come forward with an interest in contributing to the continuation and growth of the program, and to give back to a community that provided them with opportunities and support for their development as elite orienteers.

JTESC is looking forward to the next phase of the NJP. Be sure to look for the 2020 National Junior Program Application package, to be posted on the OUSA website around Nov. 15, 2019. Coaches Erin and Greg will be available with advice to current NJP athletes on future coaching options at least through the end of this year.

Mark your calendars, 2020 will be an exciting year for the juniors. JWOC team trials are slated to be held at the Junior Nationals on April 18-19, and JWOC will be in Turkey in July. With WOC 2020 being the first Sprint format year, and with many current juniors showing recent strong performances in Sprint competitions, we are looking forward to some of them trying out for the WOC team. We are further hoping for a strong showing by our college and college-bound NJP athletes in the Team Trials for WUOC. And please, everyone, mark your calendars for NAOC 2020, where NJP juniors are hoping to help the U.S. bring the Future Champions Cup home again.

Any questions to JTESC may be emailed to ousajuniorprogram@nullorienteeringusa.org, or contact the JTESC Chair Guy Olsen directly by using the email address indicated on the Orienteering USA website, under Committees/U.S. Teams.