Route to WOC24 Edinburgh 🇬🇧 (2)

The journey continues with our second post in the “Route to WOC” series, this time focusing on the Individual Sprint Qualifiers. We expect an interesting mix of fast and straightforward legs, combined with legs where route choice will be crucial. These qualifiers come with added stress as there are three parallel heats, resulting in numerous visible controls and many runners moving in various directions. Only the top 15 from each heat will advance to the final! It will be a tight competition where every second counts.

In this type of qualifier, the pressure is immense. Athletes must navigate through an intricate network of streets and obstacles, making split-second decisions that could make or break their race. The presence of multiple heats running simultaneously adds to the chaos, with many controls and runners converging and diverging in a complex dance of strategy and speed.

The key to success will be in balancing speed with smart route choices. Competitors will need to stay focused and composed, ensuring they do not waste precious seconds on suboptimal routes. The anticipation is building, and soon we will see who can rise to the challenge and secure their place in the finals.

Today’s leg, without being overly complicated, can result in a loss of precious seconds if the best option is not chosen. An extra fence make the route choices more difficult, and many options are open. Can you find the optimal route? Draw it by clicking the link below.

Credits to several runners from the Spanish team for their invaluable help in drawing the map: Ana Isabel Toledo, Alvaro Casado, and Pablo Ferrando.
Thank you and good luck at WOC!

SPOILER ALERT!!!

If you haven’t drawn your route yet, do not keep scrolling down!!!
The analysis of the routes is posted below

When we make a route choice, the steps to usually follow are: locate the control location, analyze the obstacles close to the red line, look for “fast tracks” that are a little wider, and decide the option that presents the best balance.

In this case, it is very helpful to first understand the control area, where we see that the entrance must necessarily be from the south (due to the wall), in addition to which, the extra fence penalizes the North options even more.

Taking all of the above into account, and although at first glance options A (454m) and B (442m) may seem shorter, the final part of the leg penalizes them quite a bit. This is why options C (417m) and, D (421m) are shorter and, presumably, faster.

Analyzing the entire leg before choosing the route is usually a winning investment in the sprint race. Do you agree?