WMTBOC 2007 and 2015 throwback
19th time at all and for the 3rd time in the Czech Republic. We are proud that the Czech MTBO competitions are known as good-quality races and many riders are coming back to compete in our terrains. It’s an honor to host all the national teams in the Czech Republic for the 3rd time. Both previous championships were very well evaluated and we hope we can level up once again. Let’s take a look back and remember those previous events.
Nové Město na Moravě, 2007
In 2007 the Czech Republic hosted the 5th MTBO championships in Nové Město na Moravě. And it was an innovative one. Sprint distance was introduced for the first time in WMTBOC and the very first live broadcast from an MTBO event was realized. To describe the emotions from the event, let’s look at the sum-up from Jiří Vraný, the Czech national team’s coach. "The organizers did a really good job. Most of the athletes and not only the Czech ones were saying the same thing as I do: There were no better world championships before. Of course, a few small mistakes appeared but the overall impression was very good..."
Martin Ševčík in the then biathlon arena. (foto: mtbo.cz)
The event held five races - sprint, middle, long qualification, long finale, and relays. 109 men and 65 women from 22 countries started there. In the women’s races Xenia Chernych from Russia was the strongest athlete. She won two gold medals and one silver in the individual stages and another silver medal in the relay. Michaela Gigon from Austria accompanied her on the podium for her fourth gold medal (long distance) a second silver medal (middle) and a bronze medal in the relay. On the front positions was also Christine Schaffner from Switzerland who made it to 5th (sprint, relay), 4th (middle), and 3rd (long) position. The 5th girl was Ingrid Stengard who was 5th in all individual disciplines.
In the men’s races, the leading positions weren't that clear. Jeremie Gilmann from France enjoyed the podium the most. He earned two silvers (middle, sprint) one 4th place (long), and the gold medal in the relay. Otherwise, gentlemen were politely taking turns on the podium.
Markéta Jirásková won bronze medal in 2007 WMTBOC. (foto: mtbo.cz)
Back in 8 years, Liberec, 2015
The World Championships came back to the Czech Republic After 8 years. The meeting was in Liberec in the very north of the country. Even this time there were some firsts. Because of the internet connection spread, it was the first time it was obligatory to broadcast the events on IOF Live center. Except that the organizers connected the cables for Sport Ident Air+ system to get the wireless timekeeping on the finish line and Martina Tichovská won the gold medal for the first and even the second time.
Martina Tichovská took two golden medals in 2015. (foto: mtbo.cz)
The whole event held 4 races - middle, sprint, long, and relays. And that all twice because it was also the Junior World MTBO Championships (since 2008). Overall the event joined 106 men, 63 women, 66 men juniors, 37 women juniors, and 31 officials from 28 countries.
In women’s races, Martina Tichovská was the leader. She won the gold medal in the long and sprint distance, the silver medal in the middle distance, and the bronze medal in the relay. Emily Benham Kvale from Great Britain was also very strong. She took back home one bronze medal and two 4th place diplomas. Another well-prepared woman was Gallete Bartet from France who won one gold medal in the middle distance, two 5th places (sprint, long), and a 4th place in the relay. In the men’s category were the leading positions more consistent that year. Luca Dellavalle from Italy gained the whole collection of medals - gold in the sprint distance, silver in the middle distance, and bronze in the long distance. Two golds (middle, long) and a silver medal won Anton Foliforov from Russia. Jussi Laurila from Finland won the silver medal in the long distance, the bronze medal in the relay, and was in 5th place in the sprint and middle distance.
Jan Svoboda punches the last control in 2015. (foto: mtbo.cz)
Even though the Czech Republic was preparing for another World Championships in 2020, it was canceled for obvious reasons. So we are looking forward to 18th of August 2023 when the 19th World MTBO Championships will start, this time in Jičín.
Czech team in 2007 in Nové Město na Moravě. (foto: mtbo.cz)