Eduard Hallberg’s parents wanted their son in a hotel – the rules of the Olympic Committee did not give in

“A mobile home, us and two dogs. Madonna di Campiglio, Adelboden, Wengen, Kitzbühel, Schladming…”, Nerdrum lists familiar destinations from the alpine regions.

However, the most important stop was Bormio, where the boy’s Olympic debut awaited last week.

Eduard Hallberg counted Finland’s medal hopes through the World Cup, and the sky was open in the Olympic slalom on Monday.

“I still wonder if this is true. That is, that he now belongs to the top of the world,” says the mother.

Expectations were high when Hallberg started the slalom in Bormio on Monday. He started from the starting gate with number 9 and clocked a great first split. Then something happened, let the calculator himself tell what:

“The ski was far away from the body and stuck a little in the snow. I was in too much of a hurry and I couldn’t get through,” Hallberg described his mistake.

That was it then, and four years later again. Gold was fixed by Switzerland Loic Meillard before Austria Fabio Gstreinia and Norway Henrik Kristoffersenia. Also Finland’s second calculator Jesper Pohjolainen derailed on the opening descent from the track.

Hallberg’s after the opening round, the loved ones headed to the center of Bormio around a coffee table to digest what happened.

“That was a realistic medal. I was hoping for composure on the first descent, when the markings were tight and the weather was bad. He gasped a little too much in the wrong place,” Thomas Hallberg assessed.

His tone is gentle, not judgmental at all. The father coached his son for a long time and the parents toured all the competitions. Now they have remained in the background for three years.

“We don’t give final instructions and we don’t whip after the race. We just have fun. We know that slalom is a cruel sport. It’s either or,” he describes.

The mother does not think that the pressure has caught on the boy’s shoulders. Father flashes such an option that maybe Eduard thought that it was necessary to calculate harder than was actually necessary.

The Hallbergs have seen their son a couple of times during the games in Bormio. Last week, they would have liked to go with visitor accreditations to meet Eduard at a hotel in Finland, but the Olympic Committee did not agree to this.

“We were disappointed by that, but the Finnish Olympic Committee has such a policy. Our visit wouldn’t have posed a terrible health risk,” says the father.

“Eddie wanted us there. We would have liked to go there, and so would his girlfriend,” says the mother.

Head of communications for the Olympic Committee Mika Noronen confirms that the aforementioned policy is absolute for health reasons at the Milan-Cortina Games. Visitors do not have the opportunity to meet Finnish athletes in the competition village.

According to Thomas Hallberg, the Olympic Village has a diverse group of people with visitor passes.

Who knows if a visit from parents and girlfriend would have made any difference.

Eduard Hallberg was happy that his parents, girlfriend, uncle and cousin were cheering him on in the most important start of his career.

“The day was too short for me, but my loved ones understand this sport. So the sport is shitty, but at the same time great, because it’s not easy.”

The comments of the 22-year-old slalom ace attracted a lot of interest after the opening count. Although there were enough interviews, he patiently answered each one and openly went through his mistake.

The last question of the last interview opened Hallberg’s taps properly. He was asked to highlight something about being in Bormio. Hallberg thought for a moment and began to cast spells.

“The food is really bad. It’s really much worse than during the World Cup here. Then it got around that the hotel has a sauna, but they don’t agree to heat it. Not even though we’ve been with “Jepe” (Pohjolainen) several times to discuss the matter at the respa,” Eduard Hallberg concluded.

Right after, he remembered to say that the Olympic Games is a big deal for him, despite everything.

“It’s great to represent Finland. Yes, the Olympics mean a lot to me.”

The parents speculated that the intensity of the boy’s outburst was increased by the disappointment of the result.

“Yes, you should still get decent food here,” said father emphatically.

The adventure of the older weeks in Central Europe is coming to an end and the work is waiting. The mother describes that the summer vacation will soon be over. A few thousand more kilometers and the camper van can rest on Finland’s quiet roads.