POSIO, Finland – Sweden has claimed the inaugural gold medal at the European Ski Orienteering Championships (ESOC), which commenced on Thursday with the highly anticipated Sprint Relay in the challenging Kohtilathi terrain. The Swedish team, comprised of Magdalena Olsson and Jonatan Ståhl, delivered exceptional performances, maintaining a leading position throughout the six-leg race.   

Amidst brilliant sunny conditions in Northern Finland, 25 teams competed, with home favorites Amanda Yli Futka and Niklas Ekström of Finland posing the most significant threat to the Swedish duo. The first four legs saw a tight contest between the neighboring nations, with only seconds separating the leading teams. However, Magdalena Olsson's remarkable performance on the fifth leg, particularly in the hilly terrain, created a decisive gap. Olsson also achieved the fastest times in all of her legs.

This advantage allowed Ståhl to begin the final leg with a 42-second lead, which proved insurmountable for their pursuers. Niklas Ekström of Finland crossed the finish line 19 seconds behind Ståhl, securing the silver medals. Following closely were two other Swedish teams, while Styrk Kamsvaag led Norway to bronze, finishing 38 seconds behind the Swedish champions.   

Kamsvaag partnered with Anna Ulvensøen, the Sprint Relay gold medalist from the previous ESOC two years ago. Notably, Jørgen Baklid, the current World Cup leader, was absent due to injury.   

The subsequent podium positions were claimed by Estonia 2 (Doris Kudre, Olle Ilmar Jaama), Bulgaria (Antoniya Grigorova, Stanimir Belomazhev), and Switzerland (Delia Giezendanner, Corsin Boos).

The Junior World Ski Orienteering Championships and European Youth Ski Orienteering Championships also commenced on this day. Finland and Sweden showed great prowess in those events as well.

Here is a summary of the top 6 from the ESOC Sprint Relay.

ESOC Sprint Relay - Top 6:

Sweden (Olsson, Ståhl) 47:06 minutes
Finland (Futka, Ekström) + 0:19
Norway (Ulvensøen, Kamsvaag) + 0:38
Estonia (Doris Kudre, Jaama) + 2:21
Bulgaria (Grigorova, Belomazhev) + 2:54
Switzerland (Giezendanner, Boos) + 3:46
The competition continues with the Sprint race, with the women’s race starting at 11:30 EET (UTC +2) and the men’s race at 12:15.

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