Erik Valnes sets his sights on the 10 km
He is obviously a serious contender for the individual and team sprint titles. But Erik Valnes is aiming for a completely different medal in Trondheim next February. “I have to admit that I’m much more enthusiastic about the classic 10 km, it’s closer to what cross-country skiing is at the start, more than the sprint, and with my training and my latest results over this distance, I think I’m capable of it,” he explained in the columns of Nettavisen.
In fact, the cross-country skier admits that he hardly even thinks about the sprint. “Obviously, I’ll try to qualify, but mentally, I’m only concentrating on the 10km,” he adds.
And to prepare himself in the best possible way, the Norwegian didn’t bother with the national team, which had left for Sweden. Instead, he chose to travel to Muonio in Finland. ‘It’s much closer to Tromsø, only a 4-hour drive, whereas Idre in Sweden is much longer and therefore tiring, explains Erik Valnes. I do it every year, and I asked to miss the camp months ago so that I could go to Finland.”
Valnes also points out that the Muonio stadium is a pleasant place to train, where he is sure to come across other Norwegians, Italians, Germans and, of course, Finns. “I should see a few familiar faces on the track and I’ll be able to train with them”, he says. A good way of gauging the competition with just a month to go before the start of the winter season.
Didrik Tønseth ill
Didrik Tønseth is perhaps the most local athlete at the Trondheim Worlds. He lives just 500 metres from the stadium. But for the moment, the cross-country skier is a long way from qualifying. “I’m not in good shape at all, in fact I’m in a very bad situation, he admitted to NRK. In September, I was perhaps in the best shape of my life.”
But unfortunately, on his way home from the national training camp in Torsby, Tønseth fell ill. “I had a high fever and could barely get out of bed, he says. I caught a bacterium called mycoplasma, which went straight down into my lungs.”
The problem is that many athletes who have contracted this type of bacteria have never returned to their highest level. “But some do, so I have to remain hopeful. I stopped for ten days , but I can’t wait any longer, so I’ve resumed training, even though I feel a lot less fit than I did a month ago,” continues the Norwegian.
Especially as Didrik Tønseth is running out of time. His sights are set on the 10km classic, and to qualify, he will have to put in some very good performances in the same format in Beitostølen and then Ruka. So he has barely a month to get back on his feet.
Halvor Egner Granerud and Johann Andre Forfang in conversation
For several seasons now, Halvor Egner Granerud and Johann Andre Forfang have been hosting a podcast called ‘Hoppcast’. However, the podcast went on hiatus for over 9 months without warning… Until last Tuesday, when the two jumpers published a new episode. They decided to tackle the subject that has been all over the media: the conflict between them and their former coach Alexander Stöckl.
“That’s why we didn’t publish any podcast episodes, because we wanted to keep all this out of the media and it was difficult not to talk about it while dealing with everything else, explains Halvor Egner Granerud in a statement reported by TV2. For months we were very careful with the media and it was very tiring.”
In fact, it all started at the World Ski Flying Championships in Kulm, where Norway came away empty-handed. “So we held a meeting of the athletes to sort everything out after a season without results at the start, when our group dynamic was no longer working at all,” adds Johann Andre Forfang .
Problems on a sporting level but also on a personal level, which explains why the jumpers chose to keep all this in-house.
The jumpers then drew up a report which was sent to the Norwegian Ski Federation. “We made sure that absolutely all the athletes were in agreement , and together we chose not to express ourselves in the media, explains Forfang. On the other hand, the wave of insults we were subjected to was very difficult.“
Jarl Magnus Riiber, a guest on the podcast, supports his compatriots: “You were very brave to do that in the middle of the season, but it was necessary for you to be able to prepare for the Worlds with peace of mind, and all I wanted to do was defend you publicly,” reacts the Nordic combined skier.
“We were sorry to see Stöckl thrown into the media spotlight like that, it wasn’t our intention, but we’re pleased that everything has been sorted out and that everyone is ready to move on,” concludes Granerud.
National ski jumping championships: the failures
While we already know who won the Norwegian national championships ski jumping event last weekend, we don’t know much about the setbacks suffered by some.
Starting with Robert Johansson. Back in the national team for the coming season, the jumper was due to take the start but in the end was not seen at the top of the springboard. “After a hard training session the day before, I felt some pain in my back, so I preferred to be reasonable and not compete,” Johansson explained to the daily Dagbladet.
The jumper has already undergone surgery and injured his back several times, so it’s understandable that he’s anxious not to risk another injury just a few months before the home World Championships. “But it’s a precautionary measure, and his start to the season is in no way in doubt,” says Magnus Brevig, the national team’s new coach.
For Halvor Egner Granerud, 5th in the competition, the weekend wasn’t all plain sailing either and he too almost didn’t start. “I was really stupid and ill-prepared, he told Dagbladet. I took the wrong combination with me when I left the hotel.”
A fact that doesn’t seem particularly serious, but we know just how crucial the wetsuit is in ski jumping. “I jumped with an old wetsuit, so the fabric wasn’t ideal and neither were the measurements, says Granerud. It totally destabilised me and didn’t allow me to make an optimal jump.”
It was a stupid mistake because the two suits were the same colour… A mistake that Granerud will try not to repeat at the Trondheim Worlds.
Ingrid Låte: fall and concussion before the Worlds
Ingrid Låte is a 17-year-old Nordic combined skier with a bright future ahead of her. She even beat champion Gyda Westvold Hansen in a recent competition, so she is naturally hoping for a place in the Worlds team. But just as she was about to compete against the other Norwegians on the springboard in Trondheim, Låte fell hard on her head.
“She’s suffering from concussion, says Ivar Stuan, Norwegian Combined Director, speaking to NRK. She’ll probably have to stay away from the jumps for a week or two and won’t compete until Beitostølen, but she still has time to prepare for the season.”
Pål Golberg breaks through on TikTok
This summer, Pål Golberg got married. But before that, of course, he had a bachelor party with his friends. They decided to take him for a little makeover, and went through the door of a clothing shop whose owner and seller has become famous in Norway on the social network TikTok.
Christoffer Falleth shows off his shop with humour in short videos, sometimes featuring Norwegian celebrities. So he jumped at the chance when he saw Pål Golberg walking past his shop.
“I followed him afterwards and saw the video he made with me – he’s really very funny! comments Golberg in the Nettavisen columns. You’d think he’d have a script, but not at all, he’s a natural and he’s also very well trained in social networking!”
On the other hand, his look, with a straw hat, patterned shirt and striped trousers, may not be to everyone’s taste, even if Falleth doesn’t hesitate to compare him to a Greek God in the comments to the video , reminding his followers that Golberg is the reigning 50km world champion. Free publicity for both!
