WUCS Report 2024

Over 200 athletes from 30 different nations took part in the 2024 FISU World University Orienteering Championships in the city of Bankso, Bulgaria between 1-5 August.

12 athletes represented Great Britain and their respective Universities at the Championships, which is held every two years, and hosts both Sprint and Forest disciplines. 

Individual Sprint

The first Championship race was the Individual Sprint, held on Thursday in Bankso, where the athletes faced a mix of park and urban terrain.

Fiona Bunn took a fantastic 6^th place, finishing highest placed British athlete in the Women’s race with Rachel Brown and Laura King also recording top 20 finishes.

In the Men’s race Eddie Narbett, Peter Molloy and Freddie Carcas all finished inside the top 20, (13^th, 17^th and 18^th respectively).

Sprint Relay

The Sprint Relay took place in Razlog the next day, where Great Britain were in with a great chance of a medal on the fast and flat course. The team of Rachel Brown, Peter Molloy, Eddie Narbett and Fiona Bunn ran four excellent legs to take gold ahead of Switzerland and France.

After the race Fiona Bunn said “coming into the race we knew we could be in the mix, but there were so many strong teams so a medal felt like an outside chance. But the team all put in incredible runs, keeping their heads cool in the heat of the race and pushing for every second. I knew I was in the fight for the medals on the final leg, but I had no idea I was running in to take the win. I am so happy for the whole team, and excited for the rest of the races!”

Middle

Following a rest day on Saturday, the Championships moved into the forest for the Middle distance, where the hilly Motikata terrain featured complex contours, low visibility, and lots of rocks!

Following two excellent runs already in the competition, Fiona Bunn once again finished inside the top 10, with another brilliant 6^th place finish. In the Men’s competition Peter Molloy was the highest placed GB finisher in 27^th.

Relay

The Forest Relay was the final race of the Championships, held in the same complex terrain as the Middle Distance the previous day. There were some great runs by the GB athletes, with both the men’s and women’s first teams gradually climbing up the placings to finish in 7^th (David Bunn, Euan Tryner, Peter Molloy) and 8^th (Niamh Hunter, Laura King, Fiona Bunn), respectively.

Well done to all the athletes for a great week of racing and thank you to the Team Managers - Tom Bray and Jon Musgrave - for supporting the team.