On May 14, JWOC tests and also national team trials were held in Blekinge. The competition, organized outside Karlskrona, was an important opportunity for both juniors and seniors aiming for international assignments in 2026.

For the juniors, the event was the final World Championship test ahead of this summer’s Junior World Orienteering Championships (JWOC). The juniors competed in a long-distance race in a JWOC-relevant terrain featuring a lot of rocks and, at times, extremely detailed navigation.

In the women’s race, Freja Hjerne (Tumba-Mälarhöjdens OK) claimed a dominant victory by more than six minutes ahead of Hungary’s Janka Mikes. In the men’s race, Anton Jonsson of OK Tyr won narrowly ahead of Edvin Åtting from Linköpings OK.

Women’s podium:

1. Freja Hjerne, Tumba-Mälarhöjden OK – 58:18
2. Janka Mikes, IFK Mora OK – +6:22
3. Signe Hördegårdh, IFK Göteborg Orientering – +9:06

Men’s podium:

1. Anton Jonsson, OK Tyr – 1:06:05
2. Edvin Åtting, Linköpings OK – +0:15
3. Axel Thybeck, Lindebygdens OK – +1:06

The competitions were organized by Karlskrona SOK together with the Swedish Orienteering Federation’s national team management. The test race also marked the start of an intense orienteering weekend in Blekinge, which now continues with the Swedish Sprint Orienteering Championships on Saturday.

“These were decisive races where the technical and highly detailed terrain caused quite a few problems for the runners at the controls. There were probably very few who managed a flawless race today,” said Swedish junior national team coach Erik Mattsson.

The final selection races for the juniors will take place on Saturday in connection with the Swedish Sprint Championships in Ronneby.

Photo: Bo Svilling