Torbjørn Nordvall, Frida Karlsson | Has Frida learned from the mistakes of the past year?

At the same time, I tremble before the season: Has the 21-year-old learned from last year’s mistakes, how to eat enough and not over-work his body?

When Karlsson, with an icy gaze, sits at 90 degrees and just waits for biathlete Ingrid Landmark Tandrevold, we see how competitive she is.

So strong.

So concentrated.

So hard on the head.

The entertainment value is high, at least for those who like Swedish-Norwegian duels with popular winter athletes still bleeding from the flag on their chest.

It is a battle. It is almost life or death.

When Karlsson also leads the Swedish team to victory by climbing 1,519 steps with a ten kilo bag on his back along the road, yes, then the physical and mental qualities have spoken clearly.

Even Marit Bjørgen herself expresses superlatives about Frida Karlsson’s achievements on the slopes of the Rjukan mountains.

Also read: Experience Bjørgen in Vasaloppet already tomorrow

I am also very impressed with Karlsson.

Not only for its strength and endurance.

Karlsson gives an impression of maturity, happiness, security and confidence even at the table. He’s not afraid to ask questions of icons like Gunde Svan, Petter Northug jr., Marit Bjørgen or Martin Johnsrud Sundby.

All well-developed legends for 30 years.

It’s hard to believe that the Frida Karlsson we see on television is the same person who almost a year ago raged.

Burned. Low energy. Start the ban.

The border was crossed.

Karlsson had driven to the basement, and it took him several months to fill up on food, recharge his batteries, and learn about nutritional physiology.

Most of the season went down the drain for the girl who took individual silver and bronze at the 2019 World Ski Championships in Seefeld and won relay gold with Ebba Andersson, Charlotte Kalla and Stina Nilsson.

There had simply been very little recovery and little nutrient intake relative to load.

The three-mile victory at Kollen saved Karlsson’s season. The sprint winner over Queen Therese Johaug made the media go wild.

Both in Sweden and Norway.

Also read: Karlsson and Kalla are critical of the fluoride ban: – We need clarity

The pressure has mounted on Karlsson, who seems to take it all in and have the situation under control. Hopefully, the Ski Association’s medical team has also learned last year’s lesson.

What happened must not happen again.

Control feels like.

This summer, the biggest hopes for the Blue and Yellow World Cup have appeared in the media every other day. The record at Hallstabacken at home in Sollefteå has been broken with several horse lengths, youth idol and sponsor Petter Northug jr. has received wet and dry support after his dangerous adventures, and has been told by the FIS, the International Ski Federation, that banning fluoride is unwise as long as a reliable testing machine can decide fair play or cheating .

I know that Frida Karlsson has a professional and caring support system around her.

I also know, as Landskampen shows, that his own will and pain threshold are extremely high. She is at least as tough as Charlotte Kalla.

Now it’s Karlsson’s turn to balance on the famous razor’s edge to avoid making the same mistake as last year.

I hope Karlsson is impressed with Therese Johaug’s wise decision this summer, when she dared to say stop and relax when her body screamed for rest and recovery.

Frida Karlsson dominates in Landskampen, but Therese Johaug is the reigning ski queen.

Unlike Karlsson, Johaug has lived a long life in the limelight and has learned a lot about herself and how she deals with everything that happens in terms of training, competition, media and the market.

Johaug knows when the limit has been reached and knows the consequences if the total load becomes too great. I hope Karlsson learned from what happened too. Whether this is the case remains to be seen.

I definitely think Karlsson can win again at the World Cup, and maybe the World Cup as well, but we shouldn’t expect that. Johaug’s new scalps should basically be seen as an asset in a maturing process to become a future ski queen.

The most important thing now is that Frida Karlsson feels good in body and soul in her new role as an elite runner and public figure, and that she has health, joy and goes to work with a living body for an entire season.

That she does not allow herself to be provoked by herself, by the media or others.

Then it can be good, better, better.

As in the International.

/ Torbjörn Nordvall