History of orienteering

[2] At the end of World War I the first large scale orienteering meet was organized in 1918 by Major Ernst Killander of Stockholm, Sweden.

[4] Killander continued to develop the rules and principles of the sport, and today is widely regarded throughout Scandinavia as the "Father of Orienteering".

By 1934, over a quarter million Swedes were actively participating in the sport, and orienteering had spread to Finland, Switzerland, the Soviet Union and Hungary.

In North America, the first orienteering event took place in the United States, at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, in November 1941.

Swedish orienteer and business man Björn Kjellström, who moved to the United States in 1946, had a major influence on the sport there.

[12] The only World Championship to be held in North America took place at Harriman State Park, New York, USA, in 1993.

[13] Eleven countries sent representatives to an international conference in Sandviken, Sweden, in 1949 that aimed to bring more consistent rules and mapping standards to the sport.