Czech O-Tour 2024 starts in 3 weeks: What awaits you on the course?

Mirakulum is a place full of surprises and diversity. The amusement park’s facilities are completely unique and we will try to offer you the best of it in one day. The races are coming up and so we want to show some of the map and course preparation.

Paths, passages, underpasses, overpasses… The amusement park is not the centre of the city and there will be no zigzagging between the streets between the houses during the first two races of the Czech O-Tour 2024. On the other hand, there will be lot of castles, climbing frames and trampolines. However, the detailed space of the Mirakulum requires very careful mapping of what is really important for orientation, and on the contrary, less important things simply do not “fit” into the map. Therefore, for example, do not look for the treetop trail in the map, but you can walk it after the second stage and get to know the terrain from a new perspective. And now for some statistics: on the map you will find over 3000 m2 of canopy areas, over 2000 m2 of sandpits or almost 50 artificial objects (black cross on the map). In the part outside the amusement park there are 44 pits or depressions and 33 knolls.

To help masters, beginners and the youngest to find their way in the detailed map, we have prepared a 1 : 3 000 scale map for them, which will be available to all except the DH16-21 categories (who will have a 1 : 4 000 map)

In the amusement park and also in the forest

From the aerial view it is clear that the park has two parts, more forest and more open. Each has its own specifics and we hope you enjoy both. Careful navigation between the unusual obstacles will definitely be needed. We would like you to take away from the race a unique experience that will not be repeated. At the same time, we also care about the sport part of the race and we try to prepare a fair and safe races, just the best in all aspects 😊.

On the first stage we will let you run first in a local forest with lots of terrain details. Even so, you’ll still have about half of the course in the amusement park area where you’ll want to read the map carefully, calm your head down after the fast pace in the woods and make sure you’re punching your controls because there will be a lot of them.

Only the longer categories will peek out of the park in the second stage, but they’ll be back in soon. Here you’ll have a lot of zigzagging and you’ll definitely visit corners of the park that you didn’t even know were there after the first stage.

Czech and world elite at the start

During both races, there will definitely be someone to cheer for – friends, family, kids and elite racers – the finish line of both races will be right in the arena. At the start of each stage, the elite M21 and W21 categories, which are included in the WRE World Ranking, will be introduced. Czech stars such as Vojtěch Král, Jakub Glonek or Denisa Kosová will be present, complemented by Belgium’s Yannick Michiels, the bronze medallist in the sprint at the 2022 World Orienteering Championships. In addition, athletes from Finland, Norway, Portugal and Hong Kong are also expected to take part.

We look forward to seeing you in Mirakulum and if you want to keep all the news right at your fingertips, follow our website, Facebook, Instagram or subscribe to the Czech O-Tour News (cover icon on the top right of the website).

Vojtech Kral will be racing in Miraculum