My Journey to World University Orienteering Champ

Not selected for USA races in ski-o. Great option to put all effort in preparation for WUOC. Since that day I really did. My every daylife's diecision was made with the thought of WUOC. I knew my shape was really poor at the end of March comparing to girls who do only orienteering and have been preparing for orienteering season goal for couple of months (or even years). I knew nobody would consider me as a "nebezpečná soupeřka" in that time. But I believed everything is possible if you work hard. If you do absolutely everything for it.

I kept training and was so much looking forward to do orienteering again. I went to Sweden for almost two weeks. There were still some rests of snow but good enough for a high quality training period. And finally, I got to do o-race again! I was so happy that I would have cried. It had been seven months since my last o-race at which I injured my knee. All races went quite well and I was looking forward to see what's my current level comparing to girls at Czech races. Races were meant to be a good training, I didn't prepare for them in order to peak my shape for June-July.

The first o-race was held near Dobříš. Middle distance. I knew I haven't done so well at middle races recently but I wanted to do my best. And so I did. I could have called it a perfect race. It was. But only in the meaning of orienteering. Unfortunately, about 600m before the finnish I suddenly lied on the ground with a big pain in my knee. THAT KNEE! AGAIN! I had no thoughts about this race. I didn't care I was fighting for a great TOP3 podium at national race. All that mattered was my knee and WUOC. I just lied in the middle of forest with tears all over my face and really dark thought. Has it happened again? Have I been pushing hard and I get injured again? Why did it happen? Why doesn't the knee hold well when I work so hard whole winter to make it strong? Will it ever be good again? Will I ever be able to run o-race without thinking about the knee? Will it be again one month without training and four mounths without running? Why do this always happen just to me?

I got disturbed from my crying by a runner who asked if I need a help. I tried to calm down and asked to tell organizers to pick me up. I didn't believe I could stand on that leg. Organizers picked me up and I got to the competition arena. Fortunately, one of the best ortopedist was present at the races and he examined my knee. He was very optimistic and believed it is not that bad and that I will be able to race in a week or two. I could hardly believe it as I couldn't even walk but I hoped. Because the hope was the only thing I had.

The time run by and the knee was really getting better. After few days I was able to bike easily, then even harder.

Ten days after my injury i tried to jogg super easy. It was five days to Czech sprint champ and I had to make a decision whether to keep registred or sign off. I managed to run in the speed of 8min per kilometre. I could run but the knee felt soo weak. I kept running for 20min. What a performnace, right? The chance to run the champ was really poor. But just two days later I gave it another try. And the knee felt much better. I decided to go to Tábor, the place of the champ, and give it a try. On Friday, the day before sprint race I was walking. Something was bothering me in the shoe. I don't know what did I do but it created a quite big pain in the knee ligament. And the pain didn't leave till the sprint race morning. I decided to not run when I couldn't even walk without a pain. When we arrived to Tábor I wen to talk with Jirka Funda, the ortipedist. He taped the knee and said I should give it a try. The knee felt suprisingly good, without any pain. I started! I didn't run for any life result but for a simple joy from orienteering and running. I did lot of orienteering mistakes and the result was not good. I can't be surpsied as I had to devided my concentration between knee and map and not all 100% to the map. But I was really happy. I finished the race. And knee didn't feel worse.

Since that it has been a long journey. The knee was getting better but it has been taking a lot of time until I could run in the terrain. The biggest problem appeared in the concetration. I didn't feel like I can stop caring about the knee in the terrain. I kept taping the knee for every off road run but it didn't guarantee the knee will not go backwards in some movement. It seems like there is really nothing you can do agains overstretched back-cross-knee ligament. Maybe to change the kind of sport. And that's not what I want. So I had to be patient, skip lot of races and try to prepare for WUOC the way my knee let me. I could run sprints without being influenced by the knee. Maybe I could try to make it to the WUOC team to sprint distances?

My thoughts showed to be right. I took part in the Czech national team camp. For one day we went to Prague to do some sprint "races" with Swiss national team. In the morning we ran sprint relay. I was suprised I was able to keep up with Czech girls physically. Did I really made it to the finnish as a fifth girl only behind our WC sprinters Terka, Venda, Denča and Áďa? This was a moment when I started to believe I will make it to WUOC. We ran knock out sprint in the afternoon with three loops. There, I confirmed myself I am fast enough to fight for the WUOC sprint places.

And then the qualification days came. It all started with sprint. It was a Czech Student Championship and World Champ Quali at the same time. The terrain of Mikulov seemed absolutely great for a sprint and the course setter, Czech national team coach, seemed to be a promise of a beatiful race.

I was just about to do the map preparation evening before. My dad was doing some bee-stuff. He got stunged by many bees. Suddenly, he didn't feel very well and asked me to take him to hospitel. On the way there, he got difficulties to breathe. I drove. I called ambulance. He collapsed. I didn't know what to do. The ambolance didn't seem to be nearby yet. Luckily, after some really terrifiing seconds he started to feel better. The anti-allergy pill he took home probably started to work. The ambulance arrived after 12minutes and we live in the city! If the pill didn't start to work, I'm sure they would come far too late. The morning later I was supposedt o pick the dad from hospital. They decided to keep him there for one more night. So this was my sprint preparation... With a thought of no race is as important as human's life I had to the competitions.

It was truly an amazing super tricky course. Maybe a bit too long as the winning times reached 17minutes. I did couple of small mistakes and one too bad route choice. But results were what mattered. I was sigth girl counting for the WUOC quali ranking. So I got one point. I was hoping for more. When I checked reuslts carrefouly I found out I was beaten by one girl by one second and by another girl by two seconds. So I lost two points by two seconds!!! damn it! I really had the very realistic feeling that this one or two second will cost me the flight ticket to Finland. But I had two races to ruin this feeling.

At weekend there was the second quli race - middle. It was Czech middle dostance champ at the same time. It was crucial to make it to the A final in order to collect more points to WUOC ranking. I burried my chance for points already att third control. It was just next to the second control and missed it. I was running straight to fourth. On the way to fifth I somehow realized it and ran back. Four minutes mistakes is far too big for the final. I decided to push as much as possible, but I got tired and did another mistakes at the end. Our heat was really equal as the last girl making it to the final had loss of only 2minutes to the heat winner.

I was in the B final and decided for a good orienteering performance and saving some powers for Tuesday's last quali race. The final went well, I did no mistake but not pushing 100% didn't mean any great place.

And the long distance. The terrain near Jakuszice is really really tough. Especially in this time of the year, there is very high under vegetation. Some blueberries were high up till breast. I knew I am not so good in this wild terrain but I hoped it will be very difficult and making a good orienteering performance will be the key. I got punished for my missing-3rd control-mistake once more and got to start first. I had to rely only on myself and my skills. And somehow it worked. I did a very good orienteering performance. I didn't move through the course very fast as it was really difficult and I really didn't want to make a mistake. The biggest mistake I did was skipping the obligatory corridor from the spectator control. I realized it almost at the next control and ran back. And what was the result? I ranked fourth in the WUOC ranking and reached 3points.

And what was my final score? Four points secured me the 5th position in the ranking shared with one more girl. Venda Horčičková had a straight nomination and was not counted in the WUOC quali ranking so could be up till five girls goingfrom the WUOC quali ranking. Will it be enough for me? Will the coach mention I was only one second from having a point more? and only two seconds from having two points more? Will he consider I put effort and went to Czech o-camp to show my interest? Will he remeber I did good at the sprints in Prague?

Maybe he did, maybe not. The result was the other girl with equal points got the place. My so real feeling from after spirnt race turned to be right. I was needed one more point to secure my place in the time. I would have to run one second faster to fullfil my goal of going to Student world champioship...

This journey may seem like without happy ending. Yes, I was really sad after selections has been published. But I have realized this was not the last thing I wanted to achive. Being qualified for WUOC was just an attack point on the journey. The journey doesn't stop without visiting this point. It might be a longer and harder journey without it. Probably it will as making it to the national team without running well at some international championship is tvrdý oříšek. But I am looking forward to keep going forward on my journey. My happy ending is to see I have improved and move my shape to be a dobrá soupeřka for some national team runners.

I would like to thank all people who supported me. I would like to thank all girls who motivated me to as good as them. I would like to thank my team mates who wish best to eachother despite being opponents in the fight for WUOC places. And I would like to thank esepcially to my boyfriend Jyri and IFK Mora coach Raffi. These two guys did believe I can make it to WUOC. They believed in it the way I got to believe it myself. And that was very important on this journey. What's next? I gave myself a promise to start to prepare for winter ski-o season since July (if making it to WUOC since August). I will not change this decision despite Autumn world cup races in Prague are very lákavé. I will do my best to prepare for ski-o season. Let's see what kind of shape it wil bring for autumn races ;)