Orienteering: Top-20 finish for Knarston

Dunedin student Greta Knarston competes in the world junior orienteering championships in Italy yesterday. Photo supplied.
Dunedin student Greta Knarston competes in the world junior orienteering championships in Italy yesterday. Photo supplied.
University of Otago student Greta Knarston has had a top-20 finish at the world junior orienteering championships in northern Italy.

Knarston (19) was 19th in the women's field of 130 and coped well with the technically and physically challenging long-distance course in the mountains at Passo Rolle.

She shook off the challenge of the altitude and poor weather to reach another career highlight, following her 16th and 19th placings in world junior events in Australia two years ago.

Knarston finished eight minutes behind winner Ida Bobach, of Denmark.

Knarston's tactics included "a lot of hesitation and caution, which no doubt helped avoid a big error", she said.

The championships were held at Passo Rolle at 1500m-2000m altitude in the Dolomites, and featured much "slope orienteering", angling across the steep and detailed mountain slopes.

Knarston's team-mate, Kate Morrison, ran as high as sixth place before finishing 22nd, just 22 seconds behind Knarston.

The best of the New Zealand men was Tom Reynolds, who was 31st in a field of 150.

The middle-distance section of the world junior championships is held at San Martino this weekend.