Norwegian Martin Löwström Nyenget was able to defeat the favorite of the Finnish home crowd Iivo Niskanen on Saturday at the traditional Ruka World Cup. The difference was 2.6 seconds.
Nyenget was very satisfied in the finish interview.
– I just heard Iivo, Iivo shouts on the track. It was a good feeling when I was able to win, Nyeneget said in the winner’s interview.
Nyenget praised that it was fantastic to ski on incredible skis.
– I was a second behind, then level and I was ahead by a couple of seconds. It was inspiring to ski against Iivo. He is an incredible skier with traditional skiing. It was incredible to win Iivo, Nyenget stated.
For example, one of ‘s experts, Aino-Kaisa Saarinen, recently pointed out after the competition that Nyenget benefited from her later starting point. Iivo Niskanen admitted that the previous starting point was not useful in the least.
Nyenget told Urheilu that the place of departure did not decide everything.
– I pushed hard for the whole ten kilometers, Nyenget stated.
Nyenget trained for a long time before the season with only one hand.
– I had three and a half months of training with one hand. The condition has been good, but the strength of the upper body is weak. I’ve been training hard the last couple of weeks. It’s a fantastic feeling to win here in Ruka, Nyenget said.
The banging of the sticks stunned the spectators
Niskanen already had time to ventilate when he reached the finish line. When Nyenget got ahead, the Finnish star came to congratulate the Norwegian victory. After that, he slammed the sticks on the ground.
Last year, Nyenget was third at Ruka in his twenties. Then Niskanen was unable to compete due to corona infection. Niskanen has longed for a victory in Holmenkollen’s traditional 50 kilometer race in his career. The other year, Nyenget won and Niskanen was fourth.
– I remembered the Holmenkollen fiftieth, where Nyenget won. Has Nyenget come to take lollipops from Iivo? Sports expert Kalle Lassila pointed out on TV.
In the sports studio’s chat, many viewers thought Niskanen’s reaction after the race was childish, stupid and embarrassing. It was also considered bad behavior. Self-control was needed from Niskas.
Another skiing expert who commented on the competition in the chat Aino-Kaisa Saarinen understood Niskanen’s strong reaction.
– He just went looking for a profit. In the winner’s chair, you could see that Iivo’s emotions are starting to surface. It was visible outwardly as the throwing of sticks and heard in interviews. He was not satisfied with himself, Saarinen saw Niskanen’s disappointment.
– He didn’t want anyone to feel bad. The emotional outburst came in that situation, Saarinen summed up the situation.
Niskanen’s emotional outburst was also noticed in Norway.
– It’s okay to be frustrated, but do you have to be so angry? NRK’s expert Be Kristian Stoltenberg comment.
Fourth placed Paul Golberg was at a close range when Niskanen started hitting his sticks.
– Even grown men with a perspective on life can get angry, Golberg stated to NRK.
He understood Niskanen’s reaction because he knew the Finn wanted to win his home match.
– I was going to congratulate Martin. Iivo showed that he has the will to win. There was a lot of audience here today, so he wanted to be on the highest podium, commented Golberg.
Coach Niska is more satisfied
Niskanen’s coach Olli Ohtonen was more satisfied than his protégé with his podium place.
– It was known that winning is not easy. The Norwegians have a tough gang there. This was an extremely interesting race. A game of seconds, Ohtonen described.
For Niskas, the Ruka competition was the third traditional ten of the season. He clearly won the first two of the season in Olos Cannonball Championship and Ruka Suomen Cup.
Freshly frustrated after the competition, Niskanen described the lack of sharpness due to the lack of training. Ohtonen, on the other hand, incensed the practice.
– Today was certainly not the best of these games. However, the opening as a whole shows that the training choices and practice have been relatively successful. It’s good to move on from here. There are competitions every weekend, Ohtonen thought.