PHOTO: Bildbyrån
The ski season has finally started again.
Now comes a harsh verdict for Sweden’s biggest rival, Norway.
– It looks unusually dark for the Norwegian ladies, says SVT expert Anders Blomquist.
Today, the Swedish ski season began with the long-awaited cross-country premiere in Bruksvallarna. Emma Ribom and Calle Halfvarsson were the winners in the respective sprint races during Friday’s season premiere.
The verdict on Norway
Next weekend it’s time for the big premiere when the World Cup kicks off in Ruka, Finland. Then we get a first receipt of how our Swedish skaters stack up against the international competition.
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But already now the SVT expert has Anders Blomquist made his decision for the coming ski season. And he does not have very high expectations for Norway.
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“Unusually dark”
The big nation and Sweden’s arch-rivals can have a really tough time, especially on the women’s side. There the ski queen Therese Johaug and also Maiken Caspersen Falla have put the skis on the shelf after the last season.
“With Johaug and Falla gone, as well as a bit of a mess for H. Weng, Fossesholm and Östberg, it looks unusually dark for the Norwegian ladies. But the three riders have the highest capacity if they get it into the season, as well as the Weng twins and some new ones. So it may be ok for them, but far from the success they had for a long period”, writes Blomquist in a chat on SVT.
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Add to that the fact that Russian skiers are not allowed in the World Cup and it could be a very nice World Cup season for our Swedish cross-country ladies. As I said, next weekend we will get a first answer on how the season will be with the World Cup premiere in Ruka, Finland.
How do you think our Swedish skiers are doing this year? Share the article and have your say!
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