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FVO Junior Pathway
There's a clear pathway for junior development within FVO.
Youngsters start by learning the key skills alongside their age-peers in a fun and friendly environment, and can progress in time to national and international representation.
| Programme | Age | What does it involve? | How do I get in? |
| FVO Stars | 7-12 | FVO Stars is for junior club members age 7- 12 years old who would like to have fun learning TD Level 1-3 orienteering skills together and achieve their stars awards. Each block of 6 monthly sessions is led by a qualified club coach with a ratio of 1 coach to 8 juniors. Parents are required to attend all sessions with their junior. | Coaching blocks run from August to December and from January to June. Contact FVO Stars Coordinator stars@fvo.org.uk |
| SWAT (Scotland West Area Team) | 11-16 | Scotland West Area Team (SWAT) Juniors Group is for club juniors who wish to have fun practising their technical skills at Levels 3-5 and provides opportunities to have fun socialising with other juniors in the West of Scotland during coaching sessions and at residential weekends. It is for all club juniors age 11+ who have shown that they are competent on Orange courses. A parent is required to attend residentials and we welcome their practical support too. | By referral from club coaches. Contact the SWAT Co-ordinator via the Contacts page. |
| JROS Camps | 13-19 | These training camps are for promising juniors across the UK and are organised in Scotland and abroad. | By invitation, with further information at Junior Regional Orienteering Squads (jros.org.uk) and from the SWAT Coordinator. |
| ScotJOS (Scotland Junior Orienteering Squad) | 13-18 | Scotland Orienteering Junior Squad is for juniors age 13-18 who wish to train to compete. Selection to the squad is based on performance at Scottish and British selection races at TD4+. There are there are 4-6 residential weekends in Scotland every year as well as training tours abroad., and opportunities to compete against juniors in other UK regions. | By invitation. 2nd season M & W 14s are eligible to join, and selection is based on a series of trial races during the first part of the season. The selection policy is available on the Scottish Orienteering website and the SWAT Coordinator can provide more advice to juniors and parents about this |
| GB Talent Squad (Scotland) | 15-18 | This is the top end of the ScotJOS group, and forms one of the three BOF Talent groups. There are roughly three athletes per age year from either gender on Talent Scotland, and the squads form the basis of the GB teams for the European Youth Championships and Junior World Championships each summer. Athletes continue to work within the ScotJOS framework, but there are specific Talent Squad weekends alongside Talent North and Talent South, as well as additional advice on conditioning and race preparation. | By invitation. ScotJOS puts forward the names of its leading athletes to British Orienteering, who determine the makeup of the squad. |
| GB Development Squad | 19-23 | The next step from Talent Squad. These athletes have been identified as having the potential to represent GB at senor international level, and receive further coaching and race opportunities. The non-geographical squad comprises of around a dozen men and women, and will form the basis of the JWOC team, as well as receiving selections for senior World Cup races. | By application. You would be expected to have won a British Age-Group title previously, as well as having the time and determination to devote a significant part of your life to race training. |
| GB Performance Squad | 21+ | The very best of the elite; there are only around six men and six women on the Performance Squad, and they form the basis of the GB team at the World Championships. FVO currently has three athletes on the Performance Squad. | By application. You would have proven yourself through the Development Squad, and have the ability to gain a top 20 place in a World Cup race. This is the pinnacle of every young orienteer's dreams, and while there's just not room for everyone to make it to the top, everyone has the opportunity to try! |