NZOC2021 & Covid19

NZOC2021 & Covid 19

Introduction

North West Orienteering Club (NWOC) is well underway in organising the NZ Orienteering Championships over Easter next year, Friday 2 April until Monday 5 April 2021. For NWOC, the key consideration in developing a ‘Covid-19’-document, in close consultation with ONZ, is to ensure the safety of participants planning to partake in this event. This ‘Covid-19’-document follows Government and Orienteering New Zealand (ONZ) Covid guidelines on gatherings and social distancing and provides clarity on our cancellation policy, event fee refunds as well as practical guidelines during the event, depending on the Covid Alert Level at that time. 

Online Entries

• Online entries for NZOC2021 opened January 2021.

• The final date for online entries at ‘standard’ entry fees was Friday, 12 March 2021, 11.59pm.

• Full refunds of entry fees are available for any reason up to the initial closing date for entries, Friday 12 March.

• The final date for online entries is Friday 19 March 2021, 11.50pm. A 50% increase in entry fees applies from 13 March to 19 March.

• Requests for non-Covid related entry refunds after the initial closing date for entries (for example due to participant illness, accident or hardship) will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the NZOC2021 organisers, based on a 50% refund.

Cancellation Decision and Refund Policy

• Participants are required to pre-enter and prepay significant entry fees. In addition to the entry fees, there are travel and accommodation costs. Unfortunately, NWOC cannot accept liability for any financial losses associated with travel and accommodation cancellations or changes.
• In line with Government advice, we ask that participants do not attend NZOC2021 if they are unwell or are at risk of recent contact with a person with Covid-19. In this situation, please contact the organisers before the event to be granted a full refund.

A decision to go ahead or to cancel NZOC2021 will be made on Friday 12 March 2021. However, if on this date it is decided to go ahead, the event could still be cancelled in the three weeks between Friday 12 March and the actual Easter Weekend, in response to changing Covid-19 Alert Levels.

• If any part of New Zealand is at Alert Level 3 or higher on Friday 12 March 2021, ONZ and NWOC will review the situation and the likelihood of changes in Alert Levels occurring in the three weeks leading up to Easter 2021. If at this time the decision is made to cancel NZOC2021 at Easter, all participants will receive a full refund of entry fees. NWOC and ONZ will evaluate the situation, and might decide to reschedule the event in its original or in an altered form later in the year, at a date to be decided.

• NZOC2021 will be held with appropriate restrictions on mass gathering sizes, social distancing etc. to meet ONZ and NZ Government requirements when any region of New Zealand is at Alert Level 2.0, but not higher. We realise some people may well not want to travel or compete at a sporting event in an Alert Level 2.0 environment. If a participant registered online at Alert Level 1 but the Alert Level changed to 2.0 before or during Easter, a 75% refund will be paid on request for all race days on which a participant decides not to compete.

• If NWOC cancels an event day, a 75% refund of event day entry fees for all participants will apply.

• We will communicate any changes to the orienteering community as soon as possible. NWOC will announce major changes simultaneously via the NZOC2021 Facebook page and website, and specifically to would-be participants who have entered online. ONZ will also make announcements via their own communication channels.

Period between Friday 12 March 2021 and Friday 2 April 2021

• If Auckland region moves above Alert Level 2.0 in this period, NZOC2021 will not go ahead at Easter. A 75% refund will be issued to all participants.

• If any region of New Zealand moves from Alert Level 2.0 to a higher Alert Level in this period but Auckland region remains at Alert Level 2.0 or below, NZOC2021 will not be held at Easter 2021. In this situation and in consultation with ONZ, NWOC might consider to run a multi-day orienteering event over Easter. If an ‘alternative-to-Nationals’ event is going ahead, those unable to attend due to changes in Alert Level in their region will receive a 75% refund.

During the Easter Weekend, from Friday 2 April until Monday 5 April 2021

• For participants who entered at Alert Level 1 and then, Auckland region  moves to Alert Level 2.0 during Easter 2021;  a 75% refund will be payable on request for any race days the participant decides to not compete.

Changes since publishing version 3.0 (November 2020)

• Publication of version 4.0 on Friday 26 February 2021. Only change: Camping on-site at Leighton's Farm during Alert Level 2 restricted to 100 people max, in line with Covid Alert Level guidelines. This includes everyone in a family or group i.e. orienteers and supporters. If more than 100 people have booked to camp, places will be offered to the first 100 people who registered to camp. Refunds will be offered to those who have booked but can no longer camp due to this restriction.
• ONZ's Technical Committee (TC) issued a document on 4 March 2021, with the title "Amendments to ONZ Rules to allow competition at Covid Level 2 Nationals 2021". The TC's over-riding philosophy is to let the National Championships go ahead while at the same time ensure that the competition is as fair as possible within the restrictions imposed by Covid-19. The amendments to the rules are only applicable if NZOC2021 is run under Covid Alert Level 2.
• In close consultation with ONZ, NWOC has drafted a 'practical' plan to still have an event in the unfortunate situation Auckland is back at Alert Level 2 just before or during the event, focussing on those aspects of the event which will need to be adjusted. The overriding principle is to 'keep it simple'.
• A critical part of being back at Alert Level 2 is the use of so called 'Bubbles'. NWOC has created 6 Bubbles, labelled A - F. Bubble A holds all the elite competitors, Bubble B their families. The remaining bubbles have been designed to have families stay together, but contain a mix of different orienteering clubs. As you might imagine, creating these bubbles was done with the information available to the organisation, and might not reflect your situation.