MAPS FOR DIFFERENT FORMS OF ORIENTEERING

Orienteering became a worldwide sport in the last 25-30 years. Orienteering maps are one of the very few types of maps that have the same specifications all over the world. Orienteering maps are special, because to make them suitable for orienteering the map makers have to be familiar not only with the map specifications, but also with the rules and traditions of the sport. The early period of orienteering maps was the age of homemade maps. Maps were made by orienteers using available tourist or topographic maps and only after the availability of cheaper reproduction techniques started the process of special field-working. The International Orienteering Federation (IOF) was formed in 1961. The Map Commission (MC) of the IOF has introduced different specifications for the official disciplines (before 2000 the ski-orienteering and foot-orienteering were the only official disciplines). The last version of the specification, the International Standard for Orienteering Maps (ISOM) was published in 2000 and included specifications for foot-orienteering, ski-orienteering, mountain-bike orienteering. A new format, the sprin