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POPULAR SWEDEN: Perry Olsson finishes the job smearing for the Norwegian cross country team. Here with Marit Bjørgen in Italy in 2015. They had a lot to smile about. Frequently. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB scanpix
Perry Olsson (64) has gifted gold skis to Marit Bjørgen and Petter Northug. Now you are going to lubricate skis for Swedes.
Perry Olsson is a phenomenon in Norwegian cross-country skiing. For 17 years he has lubricated skiing for the Norwegian national team riders. But now he is leaving Norway, Aftonbladet reports.
This means that Ingvild Flugstad Østberg and Ane Appelkvist Stenseth lose their ski boots.
Norwegian lubrication manager Stein Olav Snesrud did what he could to support the Swede.
– This is a choice Perry has made. We loved him and they offered to continue with us, Snesrud tells VG and adds:
– He has children who compete on skis, now he has the opportunity to meet them in national competitions. It was probably a full assessment that made him choose Sweden.
LUBRICANT: Stein Olav Snesrud wishes Perry Olsson good luck in Sweden. Here during the Seefeld World Ski Championships last year. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB scanpix
It has been known for a few weeks that Olsson has considered replacing Norwegian long distance runners with his compatriots.
– I have extensive knowledge of skiing, but my strength may be choosing the right boat for the right competition. It feels a little confusing, but very inspiring to try something new, says Olsson in a press release from the Swedish Ski Association.
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Olsson was the man behind Petter Northug and Marit Bjørgen’s golden skis during the joyous days of the World Ski Championships in Holmenkollen in 2011. There were seven golds.
Northug switched to butter when he broke up with the national team after the World Cup in Val di Fiemme in 2013. Then current lubrication manager Snesrud assumed responsibility for Northug skis. Bjørgen stayed with Olsson throughout his career. Bjørgen was fired after the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics.
OLYMPIC GOLD: Petter Northug squeezed Perry Olsson after the Olympic gold five miles in Vancouver ten years ago. Photo: Bjørn S. Delebekk
– We are losing an experience man. He is a calm and healthy ski man, a security for those who lubricate, says Snesrud, who now has to find a replacement.
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Olsson lives in Bruksvallarna, Sweden. The Swedish lubrication manager is delighted to have “stolen” from Norway.
– It feels incredibly good. Now we can get on with the other pieces of the puzzle and start the business as early as May, Petter Myhlback says in a press release.
– We wish Perry the best of luck, says Snesrud.
