The biannual competition, which is now in its 24th year, is organised by the International University Sports Federation (FISU) and the competitions are open to athletes who are both students and between the ages of 18 and 25.
30 nations will be participating in the championships, with their athletes competing in four disciplines from Tuesday to Saturday: Knock-Out Sprint, Sprint Relay, Sprint, and Middle distance.
The races will take place in and around Vila Real in the north of Portugal, which is hosting the FISU WUOC for the first time in its history. The sprint competitions are run in the urban areas of Vila Real, offering a dense and technically challenging street network with a historic city center of narrow streets, residential areas featuring courtyards and passages, multi-level route choices including stairs, ramps and underpasses, and a mix of asphalt, paved surfaces and granite streets.
Saturday’s middle distance takes the athletes out into the forest terrain north of the city, which is varied and technically demanding, located in a military training area with moderate to steep slopes, rocky ground with boulders, cliffs and rock outcrops.
The FISU World University Orienteering Championships homepage can be found here: