Relay teams have been uploaded to the programme page. There are two documents for you: teams by school, an teams by grade. We are wishing you all safe travel to Ōtautahi / Christchurch.

Start lists and the latest version of the Bulletin (Bulletin 2v 1.1) have been uploaded on the Programme page here. We are looking forward to seeing ​you all very soon. 

Health and Safety Management (HARM) forms for each event are at the base of the Programme information here. These will need to be sent to your your principal by your team coordinator to be sign-offed before you are formally entered. 

Bulletin 2 is a more detailed event programme with detailed information, including important arena layouts for access to events. Please read carefully before arriving each day.  Access it here

Six practice training courses at Bottle Lake are designed for students to go out anytime and practice their orienteering. There are a lot of control tapes out. Check your control numbers carefully as you go around each course to make sure you get them in the correct order as marked on the map. 
Recommended courses: 
1. Year 7-8 students:
• White courses: representative of NZSS Orienteering Champs Relay
•Yellow course 1: representative of NZSS Orienteering Long Course Champs
2. Year 9 students…
• White courses: representative of NZSS Orienteering Champs Relay
• Yellow course 1: slightly easier than NZSS Orienteering Long Course Champs
• Yellow course 2: representative of NZSS Orienteering Long Course Champs

Head to the base of the programme page to find all the training maps here
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We're pleased to confirm that every entrant to the National Secondary Schools Orienteering and Rogaine Championships will receive a free buff in their registration pack, thanks to our generous sponsors, including TrailBlaze, who will be at all four events, with their great selection of orienteering clothing and equipment. Entries were due to close at Monday 22nd June but have been extended to 11.59pm Monday 29 June. Enter now so you don't miss out on representing your school across four days of fantastic navigation sport in the Christchurch area. 

Enter now for the NZ Secondary Schools Orienteering Champs 2026!
This is your chance to compete at the pinnacle of secondary school orienteering in New Zealand — don't miss it! This year's champs pack FOUR epic events across four massive days (16–19 July):
🏃 Relay –  team up and race together
🌲 Forest event –navigate in traditional terrain  
⚡ Sprint – fast, sharp, and intense urban running
🗺️ Rogaine – test your map-reading skills in a time limit
Whether you're a seasoned competitor or stepping up for the first time, this is THE event of the year. Represent your school, challenge yourself, and experience orienteering at its best.
📅 Entries close 22 June 2026 - so don't wait!
Get in, get entered, and get ready. See you out on the course! 🏆

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​We’re shaking things up for 2026 by kicking off with the relay event first on the Thursday afternoon, getting right into the school team competition from the outset, on a classic forested sand-dune area that will offer fast but technically challenging terrain.

The relay will be great preparation for the first individual event - the long distance - on the following day. The long event will be held on similar but only recently-mapped terrain, so there is lots of new detail to discover.

The orienteering champs will be rounded out by a fast and furious sprint event held at the fabulous Lincoln University campus on the Saturday, where there will be route-choice galore amongst the mix of heritage and new award-winning buildings. 

But that’s not all: you’ll have the opportunity to compete as school teams once again in the Rogaine Championships on Sunday on the stunning Port Hills overlooking the city, for yet more navigation fun, this time with the added challenge of making the right strategic choices to get back within the 3hr time limit. This will be held in the morning and within 30min of the airport to allow those travelling from out-of-town to make it back for school the next day. 

Parallel races for supporting adults and general public will be held at the long, sprint and rogaine events.  Watch this space for school entries opening late March and the public races will open later in April/May. In the meantime, save these dates, you don’t want to miss this! 

PAPO is excited to host the 2026 New Zealand Secondary School Orienteering and Rogaine Championships in and around Ōtautahi Christchurch from 16–19 July 2026. Students from across Aotearoa will compete across four days of events, including a forest relay, a technical long-distance race, a fast sprint at Lincoln University, and a team rogaine in the Port Hills.
Competition areas are embargoed  to ensure fairness, meaning competitors must not enter these areas before the championships. More details, including embargo maps  can be viewed at this Google Map link.