Skiing|An expert explains the events of Ruka’s icy slopes.
Finns the season in the cross-country skiing world cup started in Ruka with poor results.
In addition, the traditional home games took on farcical features on Sunday, when first Iivo Niskanen announced at the last minute that he would leave the men’s 20 km free co-start race, and after that four Finns dropped out in the women’s corresponding distance.
Ruka’s slopes were icy on Sunday from the previous day’s temperatures and the night frosts that followed them.
Neck said on Sundaythat he missed the race because “it’s not quite balanced”.
“I did go to exercise, but I didn’t feel like getting married. We have to monitor the situation,” Niskanen continued.
Expert Harri Kirvesniemi notes that it was unclear from Niskanen’s speech whether the decision was based on health reasons or something else.
“If Iivo goes to the World Cup race in Trondheim next weekend, then there was hardly any health problem”, Kirvesniemi thinks.
In this case, according to Kirvesniemi, it could be that Niskanen did not see it as reasonable to go out on the track in icy conditions, which are not optimal for his success.
“Yes, I completely allow that he missed out even if there was no health problem. However, this was about a distance that is not skied at the Olympics,” says Kirvesniemi.
Kirvesniemi states that the missed 20 km race would have been at most a practice for Niskanen for the Olympic combined race and the free decathlon.
“But both of those trips are on the program as such next weekend in Trondheim. It’s definitely a priority compared to that 20 kilometers in Ruka.”
According to Harri Kirvesniemi, nothing about Iivo Niskanen’s condition was revealed in Ruka, at least nothing to worry about.
Women’s As many as four Finns stopped during the 20-kilometer joint start: Oona Kettunen, Hilla Niemelä, Anni Alakoski and Eveliina Piippo. Everyone left the game before the middle of the race.
Niemelä, for example, justified the decision by saying that “the edges of the ski didn’t even get wet”. Piippo was afraid that he would make his back injury worse in difficult conditions.
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“Top skiers have competed in different conditions. They are used to the fact that you have to be prepared for all weather conditions, and they understand what is most important when choosing a ski.”
Anni Alakoski was one of the Finns who dropped out of Ruka.
According to Kirvesniemi, the reasons were at least partly good, but he still criticizes the female skiers of the Finnish national team, i.e. the athletes behind the international tops.
“There must have been an investment in training, but the equipment is an essential part of skiing. For such conditions in Ruka, you should have tested the equipment and gained knowledge of different conditions, so that you could definitely find a ski in the pack that would be as stable as possible in icy conditions.”
“Several Finns had similar problems, which means that the work has not been done properly.”
Also top skiers noted that the weather was shocking, but they still found skis that worked.
“Top skiers have competed in different conditions. They are used to the fact that you have to be prepared for all weather conditions, and they understand what is most important when choosing a ski,” says Kirvesniemi.
“Slip is almost irrelevant, the ski has to be such that it doesn’t run away in Potku and you can use it to go downhill without straining.”
According to Kirvesniemi, the solution can be found in training tracks.
“Icy conditions must be used in training, and training or ski testing must not be postponed to the next day.”
“Icy conditions come to the Games as well. It’s not even uncommon that, for example, it’s a wet day first, and then the night frosts come.”