On Thursday, Arsi Ruuskanen won the 15-year-old traditional skiing world championship for under-23s. The previous Finnish U23 champion on this trip was Iivo Niskanen from 2014.
Arsi Ruuskanen22, won the under-23 world championship in the 15-kilometer traditional race in Lygna, Norway.
– A big surprise and an amazing thing, this was definitely the skiing of my life. Before the race, I couldn’t have guessed and didn’t even expect the fins to be enough for the world championship. With a good bet, I was expecting a place in the top ten, the goldman told Urheilu.
– When I got to the Swiss (Cyril Faehndrich was the fourth) in the second round of the race and I noticed what kind of stick he had compared to him, so I knew that the maintenance had been successful for me and in my own good fault round the medal was possible, Ruuskanen repeated the course of the race.
Gold skier’s personal trainer Ville Maunuksela was naturally surprised and proud of his protector.
– The World Championship was a sharp surprise compared to expectations. The tactic was to take the first five-mile lap calmly and then go to the pees of a skier in a hot group.
– I myself was at the longest ascent, a couple of kilometers as a temporary man. All of Arsi’s opponents were already itching and talking at that point, while Arsi came in without even having his mouth open. He was sixth at that point.
– At that point, I already put the others on the radio that now I start to smell like a medal. For the last vitos, the athlete got a good boost, Maunuksela was happy to be coached.
Niskanen is the previous U23 Finnish champion of the trip
Iivo Niskanen was the previous young Finnish under-23 Finnish world champion in the men’s 15-kilometer traditional Val Di Fiemme in 2014. A few days later, Niskanen earned his first World Cup points.
In this sense, Arsi Ruuskanen from Pohjois-Savo even follows in Iivo’s footsteps.
– It is hoped that one day he will be able to rise to the podium in the biggest competitions. It would be nice to be able to test what the pace would be enough in the series of big thunderstorms (World Cup) now, Ruuskanen whispered.
Ruuskanen was involved in the skiing Tour de Sk at the turn of the year, but his illness ruined his screen at the time.
– I only got to ski there in the opening leg, the sprint. It was a pity place when a good traditional trip would have been available the very next day. Now I didn’t see what that pace at the World Cup level would be enough for. Luckily, however, the illness quickly passed, and I was able to keep fit and here I was still raised.
– I have a steady and successful season below. Vire has been good all along, and the fitness peak is now starting to emerge. Right at the start of the season in Taivalkoski, my skiing was already surprisingly good, said Ruuskanen, who was then eighth in the 15 km (p) race of the Finnish Cup on November 21, losing e.g. To Remi Lindholm 14 seconds.
A free and traditional goer
Ruuskanen, representing Kuusamo’s Erä-Veikko, says that he is a master of both the free and the traditional.
– Before that, my very skiing for the season had come free, although there were also good races at “Pertta”. Both styles have moved nicely especially this season.
Leader of the Finnish youth ski team Jussi Simula guessed that Arsi Ruuskanen had potential on a heavy, traditionally hard World Championship track.
– The medal would have been here in Norway already a terrible bet from Ars, but that world championship, huh huh. Expectations for him over the season have risen in this 23-year-old gang – especially here over the last couple of weeks, Simula described.
“A low-key and calm Savon man”
To a certain extent, the footprints can be linked to Iivo Niskane, but still Simula lacks expectations.
– It is known that Ars has that “machine” and in addition he is very purposeful and works very humbly to make the ski run better in the future. I see that he has a good way to go from here to where. However, the U23 Series World Championship is already a big deal. It is clear that those additional steps to the World Cup level are still needed.
According to the team leader, Arsi Ruuskanen is a very low-key, calm Savon man.
– He does not raise himself, but is in the gang with others. Arsi is an unparalleled employee in making it. After all, he also has the will to win, but that’s not the first thing that makes him bounce, Simula adds.