September 2019 Archives

19Sep 2019 by DS News Team

Squires, Team Russia Know-How

Well, it isn't really. Coaches who maintain their form were training alongside active athletes for yonks. A squire - or " coach who trains along" - fulfills many roles including conducting training sessions , leading by example ( how about 5 hour mountain trekking or equally long biking? ) and to some, namely team leaders, being quasi-personal coach. It could be argued that recent successes of both Team Slovenia and Team GB are linked to that active coaching system. But it's the Russians who polished the system and in some ways took a step further in the last couple of years. Here's how it works: [caption id="attachment_12791" align="alignnone" width="1920"] ...it's all started with Markus Cramer arrival to Team Russia. First order of things was to get him an interpreter. By…

17Sep 2019 by DS News Team

More On Fluoro Ban

Newsfeed, Training & Outfitting

Pierre Mignerey, the race director of cross-country skiing at the International Ski Federation since 2012, in interview with Ski Chrono/ Le Dauphine "The next year an environmental standard goes into effect that will ban production, distribution and importation of fluorine wax in the European Union.... The problem is that we have no way to control the teams for the moment. " Quite a thing to say, coming from one of the top bosses of international cross country skiing - and quite an issue overall. So, we decided to publish more relevant excerpts from our recent conversation with one of the key people pushing non-fluoro revolution in xcskiing. Say hello again to Joel Svedlund, project manager with Peak Innovation and one of the organizers of The POPFREE Ski Goes Global project…

16Sep 2019 by DS News Team

Some Ski As Work – Others Work To Ski

Leaders, Newsfeed

If you were to look at Top 50 of the FIS World Cup rankings, 99% of skiers you'd find there are true pros. In a sense that their main occupation in life is just that - to ski. It is structured and financed very differently from country to country and there are, clearly, different levels of incomes. But broadly they all earn from skiing. And then there's remaining 1%. If you study them closer, you realize with some surprise that they are actually...amateurs. Not in a sense that they are training less seriously, no. But they are actually go earn in order to ski, having a proper job (or two. or several) that pays primarily for race-related travel and training camps. Most ( but by no means all ) of…

14Sep 2019 by DS News Team

Calle Halfvarsson Changes Manager Less Than Three Months Before Season Kick-Off

Leaders, Newsfeed

He's kinda done it again. Less than 3 months to go to the World Cup season's kick off in Ruka (his favorite), Sweden's strongest male skier suddenly parted ways with his personal manager. Halfvarsson and Bo Johansson worked together for only about a year, Aftonbladet reports He still trains under Mattias Nilsson who is both Calle personal coach and that of the national team - they do have interesting arrangements in Swedish skiing, has to be said. No idea if directly related, but the sudden change in Team Calle comes against a background of series of resignations/dismissals in the national team , including that of Jonas Peterson who served as the national team manager only for four months.

13Sep 2019 by DS News Team

Northug & Co Rule TV Ratings In Norway

Leaders, Newsfeed

No offence to the rest of the show cast but it's magnetic charm of Petter Northug that attracts audiences. Aired last night on TV2 Norway, Landskampen show that pitted some of the top stars of Norwegian skiing and biathlon against their Swedish counterparts was a runaway success. 40% share of the national audience in primetime is something television bosses and advertizers/sponsors dream about. In case you've forgotten: modern cross country skiing runs on money from television & sponsors. It's essential for all involved to build best athletes into objects of adoration and to keep public interest in them on top level throughout the year. It's a death knell for business that underpins the system, to win the world championship and then to disappear into remote training camp till the next…

Month: September 2019