World Orienteering Championships
2025 Kuopio
7.-12.7.2025
Come and spectate the World Orienteering Championships
Finns have had to wait 12 years for the World Orienteering Championships to be held on home soil again; this is a unique and special event for Finland and Northern Savo. Now is the time to come and experience the atmosphere of international top-class sport! Here are a few reasons on why to watch the games in person.
The Finns have a good chance of success
The Finnish national orienteering team has been looking forward to the World Championships at home. Finland has a strong and broad representation, with more than one orienteer in contention for the brightest medals. Venla Harju, Marika Teini, Miika Kirmula and Olli Ojanaho are just a few of the top names. Some of our national team members have even moved to Kuopio over the past couple of years to prepare for the Games as well as possible. The support of the home crowd is important for orienteers at the World Championships.
A strong application awarded the WOC to Finland
The International Orienteering Federation (IOF) has awarded the 2025 World Orienteering Championships to Finland and Kuopio. This is the first time that the IOF Board has awarded two World Orienteering Championships at the same time, as both Finland and Switzerland applied for the open 2023 World Championships. Finland had already expressed its interest in the 2025 Games in advance. Switzerland was awarded the 2023 Games.
Mika Ilomäki, CEO of the Finnish Orienteering Federation, was pleased that the World Championships could again be hosted by Finland.
– For Finnish orienteering, this is a very great event. Kuopio has motivated organisers and offers a great setting to build a successful event, Ilomäki emphasised.
Timo Suhonen, former chairman of Kuopio Orienteering, was pleased after the application process was completed and awarded.
– The mood is happy, because as a club we were rigorously involved in the application, and now we can look forward to hosting the best competitors in our wonderful city, and welcoming enthusiasts from all over the world. It will be a momentous event for the club, the city of Kuopio and Finnish orienteering, Suhonen said.
The City of Kuopio has already supported the realisation of the dream during the application phase. Our vision is to be the “the capital of good life”. A good life is embodied by personal health, the vitality of the region and the richness of everyday life. This World Cup will be the first World Cup event in the region and will bring a lot of visibility to the city. The World Cup week and its crowds are of great importance to the local economy.
The 2025 World Championships will be forest orienteering, i.e. the week’s programme will include the middle distance, the long distance and the relay. World Orienteering Championships 2025 will be the fifth time that the World Championships have been held in Finland. Previously, it was held in Fiskars in 1966, in Tampere in 1979 and 2001, and in Vuokatti in 2013.