The Norwegian star has still not reached an agreement with the Norwegian Skiing Association.
The brightest star in cross-country skiing at the moment Johannes Hösflot Kläbon and the Norwegian Ski Association have been at odds for a long time. The Norwegian, who was left out of the national team in the summer, has still not signed the athlete contract required for the World Cup.
He is preparing for the upcoming winter outside the national team. At least according to Kläbo himself, it is still possible that he will miss the entire upcoming World Cup season. Of course, that would be a huge setback for the Norwegian Ski Association.
Kläbö and the superstar’s manager-father With Haakon has a disagreement with the Norwegian Ski Association. The disagreement with the union concerns, among other things, Kläbo’s freedom to enter into its own sponsorship agreements.
– Everyone who knows me knows that it’s all about values. But my father’s job is to take care of these things, so this situation has not burdened me, Kläbo said on Wednesday at his press conference.
Next winter there will be no senior championships for adults, so Kläbo’s very next big goal is the 2025 World Cup home championships in Trondheim, Norway.
– I don’t need to compete in the World Cup next season to be fit for the World Cup in 2025. I would like to compete in the World Cup, but it is not mandatory for me.
The Kläbots have suggested that the Norwegian star, who has dominated the cross-country competitions for years, should get two free periods of 8-9 days during the season. Haakon tells for NRKthat what they are offered is only one period of nine days.
– I had a goal that we would reach an agreement here today. We don’t have that, Haakon Kläbo said at a press conference held on Wednesday According to VG.
– It’s about the 8-9 days we’re arguing about. This is the situation, he continued.
The Norwegian Ski Association and Kläbo have been buzzing throughout the late summer and fall. Worked as Kläbo’s maintenance man Frode Pedersen downloaded by a Norwegian newspaper In an interview with VG serious accusations against the national team and its maintenance team. He said, among other things, that he faced bullying, backstabbing and sabotage at work.
Read more: Aino-Kaisa from Saari is outraged by the Norwegian national team’s skiing scandal, which has sworn in the name of cooperation: “Here Kläbo has been attacked”
Later, Kläbo severely criticized the management of the Norwegian Ski Association by a US journalist by Nathaniel Hertz in a podcast interview.
Read more: Johannes Hösflot Kläbo beat his country’s skiing bosses – Krista Pärmäkoski’s manager was surprised by one aspect in particular in the extraordinary uproar
“I thought the tone was good”
According to Kläbo, they had a good meeting with the Norwegian federation last week, but a satisfactory result has not yet been reached.
Director of the Norwegian Cross-Country Committee Torbjörn Skogstad did not give a direct answer as to whether the controversy is only about the 8-9 days of free time or whether it is also about something else.
– I can say that we had a meeting. I thought the tone was good. However, some clarifications are needed before we can conclude the contract. I believe we can achieve it.
Nor the alpine skiing stars Lucas Braathen and Aleksander Aamodt Kilde have not entered into an athlete contract with the federation.
The cross-country skiing world cup starts in Kuusamo’s Ruka on November 24. Kläbo, who has achieved five Olympic golds and nine World Cup golds, has won the overall World Cup four times.