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– We think it is incredibly sad to cancel Birkebeiner’s race for the second year in a row, says daily leader Eirik Torbjørnsen at Birken AS.
In early December, he guaranteed that there will be a Birkebeiner race this year and that everyone will be able to go one way or another. Anyway, it was not possible.
Covid-19 ended the Birken events in 2020, and now it’s happening again.
– We looked forward to it, but we live in a time of disability. It was an easy decision, although it was sad and melancholic, says Torbjørnsen.
I was hoping to fix
The cancellation comes after a board meeting in Birken, and Birken AS claims that the authorities’ restrictions make it impossible to carry out an event to scale both up and down.
SAD: Daily leader Eirik Torbjørnsen in Birken AS says it is sad to have to cancel Birken.
Photograph: Knut-Øyvind Hagen / NRK
– National measures, Norwegian border policy and the Norwegian Ski Association’s coronary guide are collectively such that no opportunity is given to finish neither the tourism career nor the international elite part, says Torbjørnsen.
Last Friday, Torbjørnsen said that the main part of Birken “in imminent danger” must be canceled. The elite part i.e. Skiclassic is defined as the best sports and could be organized if it were open for entry. The so-called QR-Birken could work normally.
– Now we see, in light of covid-19, that there is no longer any room for the opportunity to organize neither the exercise part nor the elite part, says Torbjørnsen.
He says they had several conversations with the Norwegian Ski Association, and the conclusion was that the chances of fixing Birken for the third weekend in March were gone.
– We were happy, but we understand the approach to the authorities, says Torbjørnsen.
You are offered a refund
Torbjørnsen says they hoped to organize a small-scale race with around 3,000 participants, spread over three days.
– These will now be offered a one hundred percent refund. By moving their registration to next year, they will also receive a free registration for our companion event, namely VinterBirken QR, which has been extended until the original race weekend on March 21, says Torbjørnsen.
VinterBirken QR was established on February 6, and in this you can cross the mountain and scan five QR codes. In this way, approval of participation in Birken can be obtained.
– There’s both service and fun along the way, and you get great prizes sent in the mail, says Torbjørnsen.
– Users can experience Birken in a slightly different way, now, in light of the cancellation.
Hard on the economy
Torbjørnsen says the cancellation is a financial setback for Birken AS as a company. However, he is confident that the organizer will receive some compensation from the state.
– Even if we lose money on this, we have the finances to support the situation we are in now, he says.
Now look ahead and hope to save Birken.
– Our great project now is to recover Birken. We hope to see the end of the situation we’ve been in for almost a year, and that we can meet once again around important Birken events, he says.
Expect a full-scale Birkebeiner race in late August.
