The largest and oldest series of orienteering sports folk competitions in Latvia and the Baltics:
Magnēts
Magnet First Race
The first competition of the magnet took place in 1969 at Lake Umma, Lilaste. It brought together 324 participants. As a teenager, the current host of the competition series, Henry Freimanis, also took part in them. In the early years, the Magnet season consisted of 12 to 14 stages, later their number increased to 16.
The heyday of the Soviet era
Orienteering sports flourished in Soviet times, when the participation of runners in competitions was paid for by employers. During the so-called Autistic Socialism, the largest number of members of the Magnet was reached to date — 2500!
“The Scandinavians drove up to us and marveled. Nowhere has anything like this been seen - working people, on a working day, participate in competitions in such large numbers,”
recalls the author of the idea of Magnet and its first organizer, Arno Līcis.
Changes in the Nineties
“In the early 1990s, at a time of great change, the situation changed — more work had to be done, and the number of Magnets members fell considerably. When the material situation in general improved, people again wanted to orient themselves, but there was a shortage of organizers of competitions. At that time I was appointed as an orienteering sports coach as the organizer of the Magnet,”
The year 1998 is remembered by Henry Freimanis.
“We gradually adapted to the new conditions. In the first year we held 12 rounds, in the second 16, and another year later we extended the Magnet season from spring to autumn, for a total of 26 rounds. The beautiful forests of the city attracted more and more visitors, so in 2001 it was decided to host the Magnets series twice a week and a year later three times a week. In 2002, we started to hold the Magnet competition also in winter. Now the series is available all year round without interruption, the cycle runs from April to April.”
Families and Youth
We especially support families and have an overview of the activities of families during the summer season. Both grandfather and grandmother, dad and mom, and children run. In 50 groups of different ages and mastery, from 4 years old up to 90 years old. In Magnet there is a nursery with a nanny, near which you can leave your very small offsprings while the parents go to the forest distances. For future and existing students, there is a Magnet School in each round. There, accompanied by a coach, we teach the young censors the wisdom of orientation. We also regularly train adult interested people in orientation skills.
Democratic
sport
“I can safely say that nowhere else in the world is this weekday evening competition as popular as we are in Latvia. I mean, it's because orienteering is the most democratic of all sports,”
recognizes Žaneta Jaunzeme—Grende, former Minister of Culture and former representative of the Latvian Orienteering Federation, who also organized the Magnets competition series.
“It's a healthy disconnect from everyday worries. A suitable distance will be found by both a beginner and an experienced landmark. The plus of orientation is that people of all ages can deal with it on a regular basis, in addition, they have something to discuss with friends, colleagues and even strangers after each turn! Away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, taking refuge in our beautiful nature, with like-minded, positive people.”
Possibility to ventilate the head
Mārtiņš Sirmais, a two-time silver medalist of the European Championships and a very multiple Latvian champion, thinks similarly:
“After study or work, everyone has the opportunity to run their distance, ventilate their head, relax or, conversely, get satisfaction, challenge themselves, competing with other “colleagues” of the Magnet. What is essential, we train physically without even realizing it. Our thoughts are mostly focused on the map and therefore we forget about the action of the legs.”
“I still run Magnet and use my skill for “grinding”! Rain or snow - this is not an obstacle for anyone! This is an individual sport, but if you find a friend or group that is your age, strength and skill level, it will be even more exciting to compete with each other!”
Magnet Philosophy
This is also our philosophy, which is reflected in the motto of “Magnet”: “Friends, rest, adventure!” Over the years in “Magnet” we have tried various orienteering disciplines such as adventure races, bike orienteering, night orienteering, we were one of the first to introduce roving in Latvia at the level of folk competitions and even tried orienteering with horses. Rogaining, night orienteering and bike orienteering, which we continue to hold year after year, gained the greatest popularity. Martin is also a night orienteering enthusiast:
“You may have heard that I also like to run Night-O, which is just as exciting, and I would even say a stylish way to raise my level of mastery. On the autumn side, Magnet offers such an opportunity.”
Innovation and Development
Henry and the Magnet team have always paid attention to the latest trends that improve the course of the competition and bring satisfaction to the organizers and participants. In 2005, in cooperation with the then new German company SportIdent Magnet, we introduced electronic marking instead of control cards. Now this system is used not only in orienteering competitions, but also in athletics cross country, triathlon, various obstacle courses, skiing and other sports events, and Magnet is the official partner of SportIdent in Latvia.
Significant events in Magnēts history:
2004
Magnēts turns 35
In 2004, on the 35th anniversary of the Magnet, a stone with an engraving is laid at Lake Ummja in Lilaste in honor of the first Magnet competition in 1969.
2009
Heartbeat for Baltics
In 2009 Magnēts together with Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian landmarks helps to organize Baltic Way memorial race and participates in it.
2015
The most popular sport
In 2015, orienteering gains The most popular sports award where great merit is directly Magnet competition for the series.
2017
Health Award of the year
In 2017 Magnet receives the Health Annual Award of the Medical Association in the nomination for the organization of popular sports events.
Luck
Passion
Emotions
