By Charles E. Scharlau, NZØI, USA ARDF Co-coordinator

Team USA brought home both individual and team medals from the 22nd World Championships of Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF), held August 16 – 22, 2025, in Birštonas, Lithuania.

ARDF, also known as radio orienteering, combines radio direction-finding with on-foot map-and-compass navigation. Using a handheld receiver with a directional antenna, a map, and a compass, competitors search for “foxes” (transmitters) in forest terrain, racing to locate them in the shortest time.

The USA delegation numbered 19 competitors, who represented the country across multiple age categories. Overall, the championships featured over 300 athletes from 25 nations, a strong showing on the international ARDF stage.

The highlight for Team USA came in the classic 80-meter event, in which Nadia Scharlau, KO4ADV, of North Carolina, was awarded an individual silver medal in the W55 (women ages 55–64) category. Her strong performance also anchored the USA W55 team, which earned the team bronze medal. The W55 team was rounded out by Maria Burrus and Alla Mezhevaya, who also received team medals. At the world championships, team scoring is based on the two best individual results from a nation’s competitors in each age category; teams may include two to three athletes.

Several U.S. athletes competed at a world championship for the first time, including Maria Burrus (W45); Rose Ganim, W1RBG (W45); Andrew Meyer (M21); Matt Craig, KM8WBC (M50), and Roland Woodward, KC9YQT (M50). Except for Burrus and Craig, each was introduced to the sport at the 2024 USA Championships in Michigan — demonstrating rapid progression from novices to international competitors in under a year.

Other notable U.S. competitors included Erin Hammer (W35); Natalia Leoni (W45); Ruth Bromer, WB4QZG (W65); Gheorghe Fala (M21); Eduard Nasybulin (M40); Alexander Myachin (M50); Evgeny Danilov, KQ4QYZ (M60); William Wright, WB6CMD (M60); Nicolai Mejevoi (M60); Ian Shields (M70), and Joseph Huberman, K5JGH (M70).

For full results of the 22nd ARDF World Championships, see ardf.darc.de/contest/25081721/25081721.htm.

For more on ARDF and how to get involved, visit the ARRL Radio Orienteering webpage: www.arrl.org/ardf.