The crown of skiing. Thus Kalle Palander would consolidate the much-hyped fluoride ban in winter sports.
– The situation is similar to the corona. It was a hell of a hassle. Everyone stuck a stick in their nose. Then everyone forgot about the corona, the 1999 slalom world champion and Urheilu’s alpine skiing expert Palander talks and compares to how the corona has not been discussed in public for a long time.
Now, only in the last few weeks, Corona has come up again in the discussion in Finland, when the coronavirus has been on the move again.
The fluoride ban once again made headlines when the fluoride content of skis is not tested this weekend in the alpine skiing World Cup competitions in Levi. Urheilu reported on the matter on Thursday.
Director of the FIS Women’s Alpine World Cup Peter Gerdol confirmed the matter on Friday.
– There are only two slalom competitions here in Levi. In slalom, fluoride does not affect performance, Gerdol explained to Urheilu.
Palander is on the same lines.
– It doesn’t matter if you use fluoride or not. Alves have a flat top. Water has hit the lower part. The surface is mirrored. It doesn’t matter what is on the bottom of the skis. It doesn’t matter at all, says Palander.
Palander believes that the fluoride ban will remain a temporary charm.
– This won’t last long. If a fault-free measuring device comes out on top, the ban will certainly remain for a while. I believe that this will be a short-term thing, however. It might take a year or two, says Palander.
The first cart caused trouble
In alpine skiing, fluorine was immediately discussed during the first weekend of the Alpine Skiing World Cup, when the Norwegian Ragnhild Mowinckel was rejected in Sölden in the giant slalom. The device that monitors the fluoride content showed that Mowinckel’s skis contained prohibited fluoride above the permitted limit value.
Later, the manufacturer of the equipment used by Mowinckel and FIS said that the tools used by Mowinckel’s guardians contained fluoride. It caused a cartwheel.
The fluoride ban has caused a lot of adjustments in the teams. A maintenance man working for the Norwegian national team Jure Sepecin according to the fluoride ban, many things have changed in his work.
– This is one of the biggest changes in the history of the sport. Tools change. There must be clean ski boxes and other things so that nothing gets contaminated. Creams need to be changed. Manufacturers also have to replace everything. You actually have to start from the beginning to find the right creams, Sepec lists.
The fluoride ban has been on the surface, especially in cross-country skiing, because fluoride has played a big role in the final results. Since the 1989 World Championships, all cross-country medals have been won on fluorinated skis.
– In cross-country skiing, this ban is a big deal. In our sport, this is quite a small thing, but it has become quite a lot of trouble. After Mowinckel’s capture, there has been confusion. The athletes are quite uncertain now, Palander says about the situation.
Palander has a bright wish for alpine skiing decision-makers.
– As long as there are no more such Mowinckel-like scams. There wouldn’t be a group caught for nothing. In slalom, this is of no use. It would be a completely different matter if fluoride cream helped to win, says Palander.
The Norwegian maintenance man does not understand the fluoride ban
According to alpine skiing boss Gerdol, fluoride testing can be compared to doping testing. There are also no doping tests every weekend. The fluoride tests also come as a surprise to the teams.
– We will test fluoride concentrations in approximately 70 percent of the competition weekends. The same thing is on the men’s side, says Gerdol.
Sepec, who also worked for the Finnish national team in his time, also does not understand why the fluoride ban is used in alpine skiing. According to an experienced maintenance man, fluoride is not used so much in alpine skiing that it would be a problem.
– I don’t like change. I don’t think the fluoride ban will affect the environment that much. This fluorine is also used, for example, in goretex jackets. I don’t understand what this is trying to do, says Sepec.
The background to the fluoride ban is that the legislation limiting the use of fluoride has been tightened in the European Union and the United States in recent years. Fluoride has been considered harmful to the environment and to those who deal with it a lot, such as maintenance workers of winter sports.
In winter sports, the problem with the fluoride ban has been that there hasn’t been a reliable device to monitor the ban. Now, however, FIS says that it has received a working device.
According to sport boss Gerdol, FIS has acquired 11–12 fluoride scanners for different winter sports. According to Gerdol, that is enough. This weekend, the fluorine scanner will be used on the alpine skiing side in the men’s downhill competition in Zermatt-Cervinia.
According to FIS boss Gerdol, the device that monitors the fluoride content of skis is similar to what is used to test, for example, the fluoride content of clothes. Gerdol emphasizes that the device used by FIS is commonly used for other purposes as well.
– We are quite confident that this device will work now, says Gerdol.
Gerdol does not take a position on whether the fluoride ban is reasonable or not. According to him, the ban will now be carried out as the FIS board has decided.
– I believe that cream manufacturers are working hard to find something better than fluoride cream, Gerdol concludes.