First Rally Obedience World Championships to take place in Finland in August

Finland has the honour of hosting the first FCI World Rally Obedience Championships on 28-29 September 2024 in Lieto. The competition will take place in the Royal Canin Arena indoor hall. The organiser is the Finnish Working Dog Association (SPKL), and the registered association Turun Seudun Agilityurheilijat is responsible for the practical arrangements.

Tytti Lintenhofer, who has served as the chief judge of Rally obedience competitions since 2014, was elected Chairman of the FCI Rally Obedience Commission at the beginning of 2024.

The jury for the competition includes experts from Europe and the Nordic countries. The ring judges are Martina Klein (Germany), Karin Lassman (Estonia), Brian Binnerup (Denmark) and Ida Lindgren (Sweden).

Rally obedience was developed in the early 2000s in the United States and combines elements of obedience, agility and dog dance. It features various movements (e.g. sitting, standing, laying on the ground, following at different paces and with different turns) in the order prescribed by the task signs on the track designed by the judge. The main goal of Rally obedience is good cooperation between the instructor and the dog. The sport became official in Finland on 1 May 2014.
 

Follow the latest information directly on the competition website.