PHOTO: Bildbyrån
Stina Nilsson has made great strides as a biathlete.
Now she reveals her rivals’ great respect for her.
– What I get almost the most respect for is that I made the decision, she says in an interview with DN.
It’s been two and a half years Stina Nilsson made the decisive decision to leave cross-country skiing as a celebrated world skier and instead become a debutant in biathlon. Today, she is preparing for her third season in the new sport and she has come a long way so far.
Stina’s first time
The first season was a lot to see and learn and the 29-year-old had to focus on learning all the new things in the IBU Cup first, the step below the World Cup. But in season two she got a lot of chances at the highest level and this spring Nilsson also took her very first individual podium in biathlon.
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She also ended last season by winning SM gold and enters the third season with high hopes of getting even closer to the top of the world. The Swede also reveals that she has received a lot of respect from her competitors so far during her biathlon career.
– Actually, I think I have been treated with respect from day one. What I get almost the most respect for is that I made the decision to make the switch and that I have done it with a lot of humility. I have never come and said that I will dominate everything, but I have shown that I am humble before the task and that my choice was guided by joy, she says in an interview with Dagens Nyheter.
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“Is really cool”
Stina herself also thinks that development has gone very fast in the new sport and that she has come a long way since her debut two years ago in the IBU Cup.
– It has gone very quickly since my first IBU Cup, where I competed on very stiff legs. It’s really cool. It’s very fun for me to feel that when everything is right, it goes a long way, she says to the daily newspaper.
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Above all, it is strong for Stina Nilsson to join the biathlon national team when the competition on the women’s side is fierce.
– I think it’s absolutely fantastic that we have the competition that we have. It is an environment that forces development, if handled correctly. Then I think it is good that we have such openness as well. We are eight girls in the national team, but only six girls are allowed to start in the World Cup. I still think that the management staff has done well with the dialogue before selections. It is very important so that there will not be a bad atmosphere in the group, says the 29-year-old in the interview.
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