International orienteering takes center stage at “Five + Five Sardinia”: Switzerland’s Hubmann dominates on the island, while Norway’s Holmboe and Switzerland’s Hotz win the women’s titles.
The final phase of the Orienteering 4 Research project has concluded, with 10 days of events, 500 athletes competing and over 3,000 tourist visits, thanks to the synergy between Sardegna Ricerche, SSD PWT Italia and FISO Sardegna.
The second edition of Five + Five Sardinia “II Memorial Mattia Debertolis” has been a confirmed success: ten days devoted to orienteering, held as part of the Orienteering 4 Research project, the result of a collaboration between Sardegna Ricerche and the sports club PWT Italia.
Equipped with a topographic map and compass, 500 athletes from around the world competed on the island’s courses, where the goal is to find the fastest route to reach a series of predetermined control points in the correct sequence. In Week 40, the opening week in the Cagliari area, the winners were Switzerland’s Daniel Hubmann (Club OL Regio Wil of Bern), a multiple world champion in the discipline, and Norway’s Stella Maria Holmboe (Club NTNUI of Trondheim). The podiums were decided by the best overall times across the five races, held at Parco di Monte Claro in Cagliari (Sunset Sprint Distance), Piscinamanna (Sprint), the historic center of Pula (Sprint) and Bosco di Is Arenas (Middle, 2 stages).
In Week 41, the competitions moved to the Sassari area, to the center of Badesi (Sunset Sprint), Baia Paradiso (Middle Distance), Bosco di Sorso (Middle, two stages) and Castelsardo (Sprint). The unstoppable Hubmann dominated again, repeating his gold, while among the women this time it was Switzerland’s Bigna Hotz (OL Zimmerberg) who took the top step of the podium. At the award ceremonies, attended by Christian Speziga, councillor of the Municipality of Castelsardo, Prof. Lino Bandiera and Dr. Andrea Manca of the University of Sassari, and Giusto De Colle of FISO Sardegna, the elite winners of each week were celebrated with the presentation of artistic trophies by the artist Roberto Ziranu, who also created the prizes for the top athletes of the individual stages.
Crowning the event was the Alghero Grand Prix “II Memorial Mattia Debertolis” (Sprint), recognized by the Italian Orienteering Federation as an International Open Meeting. The fastest to complete the race, established in memory of Mattia Debertolis, a young athlete of the Italian National Team and PWT Italia who passed away prematurely in 2025, were Fabio Amadesi (PWT Italia SSD) and Hotz herself.
NOT JUST SPORT: ORIENTEERING AND SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
Since 2023, Sardegna Ricerche has been engaged in sport science and healthy aging, with the aim of studying the relationship between physical exercise, environment and well-being, and demonstrating how sport is a strategic lever for health and active aging. It does so with the support of the Autonomous Region of Sardinia, the Municipality of Pula, the Gutturu Mannu Regional Natural Park, the Universities of Cagliari, Sassari and Verona, Sport e Salute and FISO Sardegna. In this spirit, the Universities of Cagliari and Sassari, together with international speakers, cognitive psychologists and neuroscientists, played a leading role in two major outreach events of the project, coordinated by PWT Italia General Manager Gabriele Viale. First, in Pula, at the Technology Park of Sardinia, came the conference “Orienteering 4 Research: Territory, Research, Sport and Innovation,” which examined orienteering as a model of cognitive-motor stimulation, from school learning to healthy aging. This was followed in Sassari by the round table “Sport and Exercise in Natural Environments as Tools for Prevention, Well-being and Care,” focused on the functional, motor and cognitive effects of aging and on the role of the discipline in brain health.
THE WINNERS OF THE ORIENTEERING 4 RESEARCH AWARD
During the round table, the Orienteering 4 Research Award was also presented. Established by PWT Italia in partnership with Sardegna Ricerche, the University of Cagliari, the University of Sassari and FISO Sardegna, it supports scientific research related to the practice of orienteering. The award went to three graduates of the University of Sassari for the exceptional scientific value and innovative contribution of their respective research. In the Junior category: Dr. Emanuela Claudia Tidore for “Training body and mind through orienteering in healthy elderly subjects and those with mild cognitive impairment,” and Dr. Riccardo Porcu for “Orienteering as a tool to promote active aging in healthy elderly people and those with mild cognitive decline.” In the Senior category: Dr. Davide Natale for “Neural mechanisms of Orienteering-induced brain health benefits: A theoretical framework and narrative review.”
FACILITIES FOR TESTING THE DISCIPLINE INAUGURATED
Opening the event, with a practical test for students and teachers, was the inauguration of the permanent “Code Hunter” installations built in Pula, in the Rio Pula river area, Batteria Boggio and Piscinamanna, with the addition of cartography of the Gutturu Mannu Park. With a single free app developed by PWT Italia, this engaging technology can turn any location into a low-environmental-impact challenge. Anyone can register and, having found the nearest installation, use the map to take part: searching for checkpoints in the area, interpreting the symbols tied to the natural setting, and using a compass to help.
SCHOOLS AND UNIVERSITIES AT THE HEART OF THE PROJECT
Numerous activities were carried out in schools and universities thanks to the essential commitment of FISO Sardegna, which was responsible for organizing training and implementing the cartography with its team of expert technicians, coordinated by regional delegate Prof. Salvatore Ferraro and federal trainers Giusto De Colle (cartography) and Giacomo Chiesa (teachers). At secondary schools, training courses were held for teachers, technicians and students, accompanied by student events and competitions, during which “learning by doing” sessions on practical learning were completed in Pula (CA), Cagliari, Oristano, Sassari, Badesi and Sorso (SS). The Universities of Cagliari and Sassari also saw their students, professors and researchers take part in federal training courses.