Cross-country skiing: Ingvild Flugstad Oestberg must gain weight to obtain her medical certificate
From 22 to 24 November, the opening races in Beitostølen (Norway) will kick off the winter season in earnest, just a week before the return of the cross-country skiing World Cup. Competitors from France will be taking part, along with the best Norwegian cross-country skiers on the circuit.
Expected after a season without taking part in a single race at the highest world level, Ingvild Flugstad Oestberg won’t be taking part on home soil: “I won’t be coming to Beitostølen”, she told VG, before even announcing that she wouldn’t be back with a race number on her back until Christmas.
The reason is that her health is still too fragile to attempt to take part in high-intensity events. The Scandinavian also revealed that she had been unable to provide the Norwegian Ski Association with a medical certificate after undergoing numerous tests with her doctor.
The goal of a home World Cup recedes
And while just a few weeks ago she said she wanted to secure a place at the world championships in Trondheim (Norway) and 2025, the 33-year-old cross-country skier knows that her chances are now slim to none. It hurts to say it, but imagining myself at the Worlds is no longer realistic,” she laments emotionally. I think that in my best form, I’m one of the four who can play for Norway and who can fight for a medal, but today I’m a long way from that.
Ingvild Flugstad Oestberg has not hesitated to reveal what she is missing if she is to earn a ticket. The resident of the Gjoevik Skiklubb has to put on weight and is even currently working with a psychiatrist to find out whether or not she suffers from an eating disorder.
“I talk about it very openly with those close to me. The reason it’s a bit of a taboo is that everyone has their own story,” she explains. If I tell my story, it can be positive, whereas for others it can be provocative and trigger a negative reaction.”
Read also
