Facts: The Swedish team for the mixed relay
First team: Calle Halfvarsson, Moa Ilar, Edvin Anger and Jonna Sundling.
Second team: Eric Rosjö, Märta Rosenberg, Truls Gisselman and Moa Lundgren.
The distance is 4×5 kilometers.
Mixed competitions have already existed at championships in, for example, alpine and biathlon.
Cross-country skiing has not progressed as far in development.
Today’s mixed relay is the third at this level. The previous relays were last year’s finale in Falun and in December in the Norwegian Beitostölen.
This spring, Fis is expected to make a strategic decision about a continuation of equal distances for women and men – and about the mixed relay of the future. Then today’s relay becomes an important basis for the decision.
“You often take the most recently completed competition into a process when evaluating,” says Lars Öberg and continues:
— I will not run my own agenda, but will listen to the active and then express their opinion.
Active’s opinions
Then Öberg will discover that several Swedish skiers are positive.
William Poromaa:
— It has been fun the times we ran the mixed relay at the World Cup. I like that concept and I think people find it fun to watch. So for that reason I absolutely think it should be added.
Maja Dahlqvist:
— It is good that you run the relay at the World Cup. There are many nations that have two good girls and two good boys. It can be tight and fun relays.
The tone will be completely different if it becomes relevant to introduce the mixed relay at championships.
Poromaa:
– Then it becomes a completely different question, then it wasn’t as fun anymore. I absolutely think that what you have at the WC should remain as it is now.
Dahlqvist:
— That is another question. The traditional men’s and women’s relays are somewhat legendary. I would have rather put in another sprint so we get a skate and a classic sprint.
Calle Halfvarsson:
— It will probably come along at some point, but then I won’t be skiing.
Keep all branches
Lars Öberg has the vision that no event should be deleted from the WC program if the mixed relay is added:
— You must add the program just like in biathlon. They have a mixed relay as well as a regular traditional men’s and women’s relay, he says.
TT: Does Fis buy it?
– It remains to be seen. That discussion has not been up yet. But now it is important not to bypass the process where we listen to what the riders think. We will evaluate this when the season is over.