Kerttu Niskanen’s super bet was also a blow to the expert – this Aino-Kaisa Saarinen points out as the key to victory | Sport

The wonderful victory that followed Saturday’s sprint disaster surprised even Kerttu Niskanen’s long-time national team colleague. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen saw that the ski maintenance was finally worth a dime.

Sports expert Aino-Kaisa Saarinen stated after the sprint disaster on Saturday, the opening day of the Tour de Ski, that finishing in the top six on Sunday in the Toblach 10 km (p) split start would be for someone who complained of muscle congestion Kerttu from Niskase very good performance.

Niskanen really skied into the top six on his parade run, as he won the entire second half of the race with his brutal push of the first three kilometers. Germany’s Victoria Carl remained 6.7 and the USA’s Jessie Diggins 10.7 seconds.

Saarinen admitted that the victory came to him as well, even though the winner became very familiar in the eight years together with the national team.

– Now Kerttu was able to surprise me with a real deed, and I’ll let you Crystal too (Pärmäkoski, 7th place) full points. Kerttu didn’t jump into his optimal state from Saturday to Sunday, but an experienced athlete knows that the result has to be achieved even in the current state of alertness. So such things do not affect his mental performance this or that.

Like tailoring

The Toblach track is a tailor-made job for Niskanen: a thin, thin air area that requires intense oxygen intake, long skiable climbs and technically easy descents. Sunday’s trip was also tailor-made. Niskanen has now won the World Cup competition six times, and each time with a 10 km traditional race, five of which have been intermediate starts and one joint start.

Saarinen, who watched Niskanen’s technical performance with a hawk’s eye, also sent warm congratulations to the background troops.

– Sliding shift skiing uphill for a long time is Kertu’s core competence, world class. But that requires skis that of course hold, but above all also slide. Otherwise, that technique is difficult. Today there was a really great pair below. I liked it in Trondheim, but the slip wasn’t that good at all.

On December 17, Niskanen finished 5th in the 10 km intermediate start at the World Cup in Trondheim.

A hard boost

Saarinen has followed with interest the public discussion about the level of ski maintenance in Finland during this season. Both the athletes and the coaching have at least veiledly stated that there could be better snacks.

– I myself am in favor of honesty in that matter. I don’t think maintenance would be needed if mediocrity became public praise. I know the nature of the work and I have been worried about the boys’ coping when there have been no successes. Now it really came, and I believe this will give everyone a huge boost, both in the service truck and among the athletes.

Both Victoria Carl and Jessica Diggins caught Niska, who had already taken an overwhelming lead, between 8 and 10 kilometers, each by about six seconds. The rest of the Toblach course is very downhill-oriented, and Niskanen does not belong to the downhill elite of the cross-country circus in terms of his technical skills.

– That’s not what Toblach is about, because the descents are straight and easy, all you have to do is stay on the track. Carl’s skis in particular slipped uphill, from which you already knew that the lubrication compromise had been made in favor of sliding and the end was going hard. Diggins, on the other hand, is simply in shocking shape, and without miracles he will win this Tour.

A maintenance disaster for Sweden

About the Swedes who excelled on Saturday Linn Svahn (9:s) was now the best and lost to the leader by more than 52 seconds.

– In terms of the overall competition, it was Kertu’s salvation and it means without a doubt that there has been a collective blunder in maintenance there. In the Tour, you can have a bye day once, like for Kertu on Saturday, but in the free sprint in Davos (Wednesday) you now have to go through qualifying and get bonus seconds.

The men’s 10 km race starts at 4 p.m. follows the Tour in this article.