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From: TT
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Photo: Vidar Ruud (NTB / TT
Jonna Sundling is looking forward to the Tour de Ski. Archive.
The Ski Tour was not included in your original season planning.
But after Sweden’s decision to send the skiers to the contested competition, Jonna Sundling has changed his mind.
– The tour feels like a light in the dark after all the competitions canceled, says the sprint star.
The announcement of the Swedish Ski Tour comes after a chaotic start to the World Cup season.
The way the International Ski Federation deals with the risk of infection has been criticized after its debut in Ruka and heavy nations such as Sweden, Norway and Finland have withdrawn from World Cup competitions before Christmas.
Earlier this week, news came that Norway is also participating in the Tour de Ski. But Sweden has now decided to compete in the ten-day competition.
An advanced approach to avoiding corona infection should ensure blue-yellow involvement.
– We have a charter flight that almost takes us to Val Müstair, where it begins, and home from Val di Fiemme, where it ends. We don’t need to know other people. It sounds very boring but this is how we think; that we do not want to meet ordinary people or other people, says the director of the selection, Anders Byström.
Own bus
The national team will stay at their own hotel and travel by their own bus between competitions, which begins in Switzerland on New Year’s Day and ends in Italy nine days later.
Skiers will be crowned three times during the Tour de Ski, and the Swedish team will try out once before leaving Sweden for the start of the competition in Switzerland.
– The Swedish Ski Federation has taken exceptional measures to ensure an infection-free environment for our skiers and leaders who will participate in the Tour de Ski. With the measures that have been taken, we have a minimization of risk that is on par with the same risk as if we had been at home and trained, says the national team doctor Per “Pliggen” Andersson.
In addition, the International Ski Federation, Fis, will implement certain changes to the structure that was applied in Ruka to the competitions in Davos this weekend and in Dresden a week later, where neither Sweden nor Norway are involved.
Settings that will also apply to the Ski Tour.
– On the site, I hope there is a greater distance between people, it was very crowded in Ruka in some places. Among other things, in the coach, start and finish areas, as well as in the mixed zone, where it is necessary to expand it. We have given that feedback and we hope that they (Fis) will absorb it both in Davos and Dresden and especially for the tour, says Anders Byström.
Kalla wants to go
The clear signal pleases the skiers of the Swedish national team. In recent days, both Charlotte Kalla and Maja Dahlqvist have opened up to run the tour.
Jonna Sundling does the same, although the competition was not included in her original planning.
– I was going to try to get out and drive. You have to be a little flexible in these times. It’s fun to have something to look forward to, says Sundling, who hasn’t competed since the debut at Ruka, where she finished third in the sprint.
– The tour feels like a light in the dark after all the competitions canceled.
Sundling relies on the Swedish approach to avoid infection.
– We will see how it turns out in practice, but it sounds good that we try to avoid close contact with other people.
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