Finland's largest sports event, the Jukola Relay, is differentiated from many other summer events by its environmental friendliness: at this event, which has been awarded the EcoCompass certificate, refuse is collected, waste is sorted and, for instance, participants are banned from using their own detergents, to ensure that the local natural environment is left in its former condition. Kiilto will provide environmentally friendly detergents and cleaning agents at weekend's Jukola Relay. In addition, training for this major event has been underway throughout the spring, at Kiilto's orienteering school. This year, a total of three teams from Kiilto will orienteer on the hilly terrain of Kangasala-Jukola.
Kiilto’s orienteering school prepares for Jukola
Orienteering requires stamina and focus: the terrain tests the competitor’s mental abilities and physical condition. The sport is attractive because it provides an opportunity for recreation in a natural setting, as well as challenging the athlete and their skills.
Another draw is the benefit to wellbeing in a sport that combines both physical and mental exertion with the restorative powers of nature. Kiilto, which has twice been chosen as Finland’s Most Active Workplace, regularly arranges try-outs of various sports. This spring, employees were given the opportunity to fine-tune their orienteering skills in an orienteering school organised in cooperation with Tampereen Pyrintö. The idea was to enable participants to take up orienteering as a hobby, or train for the Jukola event to be held at Kangasala.
Kiilto assembled three teams for Jukola: two mixed teams for the Jukola Relay and one women’s team for the Venla Relay.
“The best aspect of this sport is that everyone who ventures into the forest has the same starting point. Fitness is no guarantee of finding the control points; you must also use your head and have the composure to focus on map reading. We have a great team and everyone is sure to fulfil their role extremely well!” says Marketing Designer Jenni Honkala, an orienteering veteran on Kiilto’s Venla team.
Anssi Asikainen, Managing Director of Kiilto Oy, is slightly more reserved about the orienteering prowess of the management team. “Every member of the team has at least handled a map and compass, and we are looking forward to testing our skills in the night of Jukola,” he says with a smile.
Goal: not a trace left behind by the participants
Special care must be taken of the forest, which is the ‘gym’ of orienteers. The Jukola event takes comprehensive account of the environment through its own environmental programme, starting with the choice of venue and planning. It has been awarded by an environmental agency for its exemplary care of the environment in the context of a major event. In addition, the competitors play an important role in protecting the environment. No permanent traces of the orienteers may be left in the event’s surrounding.
Since Jukola’s environmentally friendly approach is in close accord with Kiilto’s Commitment to the environment project, being a partner of the event feels natural at Kiilto. The detergents used at Jukola must fulfil stringent environment criteria. Kiilto will provide Jukola with shower gel and hand soap for the washrooms, hand sanitisers for the toilets, as well as liquid for hand-washing dishes and cleaning agents for the communally run restaurant. All of these meet Jukola’s environmental criteria.