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In the traditional Lahti Salpausselkä games, this weekend there will be competition for cross-country skiing, ski jumping and combined world cup points. Urheilu predicts the weekend with three draws.
Two Finnish teams on the podium?
Right on the opening day of the Games on Friday, there will be a rare Finnish treat, when double sprints will be skied in the traditional way on Salpaussellä. The last time this trip was on the program of the World Cup in Lahti 2019. At that time Iivo Niskanen and Cross mat Hakola were third behind two Norwegian teams.
There are several good options for the men’s first team in Finland. Perhaps the most likely pair is Lauri Vuorinen and Joni Mäen formed by a duo. Both were recently in the traditional sprint finals in Canmore.
When talking about the traditional parisprint, it is not appropriate to leave out the Olympic winner of the trip and Niska, who won three prestigious medals in the parisprint. The potential name has also kept pace in Canmore and reached the top 12 Niilo Moilanen.
– When Iivo is fit, he is a very strong messenger of the pair sprint. He has competed so little that it might be good that he is skiing a pair sprint. There are several teams in Finland, so I believe that he skis in one of the teams, Urheilu’s expert Aino-Kaisa Saarinen says.
Mäki and Niskanen won the pair sprint for Olympic silver in 2022.
If Niskanen is in the first team, would you like to see Mäki or Vuorinen with him?
– Joni is a bigger type of skier. In Lahti, the countdown to the stadium is towards the end. When there is a bigger guy, it gets there a little faster. Mäki showed that he came to the finish line of Canmore a little faster than Vuori.
– On the other hand, Vuorinen is faster on the last finish line. However, I would put Vuorinen in it, because he has been in better shape on normal trips this season. However, this race in Lahti is more of a normal distance race than a sprint, Saarinen sees.
Sports expert Jussi Piirainen also Ristomatti Hakola is a worthy name for coupleprint. Niilo Moilanen is also an interesting guy.
– We currently have four really strong pair relay skiers: Mäki, Vuorinen, Niskanen and Hakola. Vuorinen has raised his level a lot for this year. Coaching has to think a lot about who is paired with whom.
– Shall we put the fast guys, Mäki and Vuorinen, skiing together? Let’s make it so that in each team one has more sprinting strengths and the other has endurance qualities? There are several good options, says Piirainen.
If furious Kerttu Niskanen is included, Finnish women can also ski from the top positions. Niskanen’s main trip is the traditional 20-kilometer intermediate start race on Saturday.
– Kerttu is in great shape. I believe that the Home Audience and the pleasant skiing technique will interest him. Johanna Matintalo is probably the second one, because he has seen good progress in traditional sprints. Sure Jasmi Joensuu can also be Kertu’s friend.
Will Niskanen keep his promise?
On Saturday, one of the main goals of the Niskaste sisters’ season arrives, when a 20-kilometer race will be held as an intermediate start. Kerttu Niskanen, who skied second in the traditional 20-kilometer joint start race in Canmore, stated that he would have taken the victory as an intermediate start.
– I had the feeling that I would have won outright if there had been an intermediate start, Niskanen uploaded to Viaplay after the joint start race.
– Yes, it sounded like a promise. It was a very believable promise, Saarinen stated a couple of weeks ago.
20 kilometers as an intermediate start is a real luxury in the World Cup.
Kerttu Niskanen goes to the terrain of Salpausselkä as a big early favorite. Niskanen also gave a strong performance in the sprint in North America, finishing fourth. The only viable contender is Sweden, which won the aforementioned Canmore 20 km race Frida Karlsson.
– The Lahti circuit is the type where you have to ski really hard. Must be able to pedal hard uphills and the same amount downhill. Kerttu is in very sensitive and fast condition even with inferior technique, so he can certainly ski really hard there, says Saarinen.
Iivo Niskanen’s condition is a big question mark based on Kuopio’s Suomen Cup. However, Niskanen is very familiar with Lahti’s terrain, as he has won the World Championship gold there in 2017, among other things.
The strongest favorites to win are Norway Harald Östberg Amundsen and beat Rukalla Niskanen Martin Löwström Nyenget.
Still life for the Olympics
In Finnish terms, even the combined pairs race evokes great memories. Eero Hirvonen and Ilkka Herola scored a victory in Salppur five years ago.
The doubles competition has a different vibe, as the sport has Olympic status in the 2026 Milan Games. It replaces the old team competition, which had four athletes per country.
There are two athletes in the team, who both compete on the hill once and each ski five 1.5 kilometer long runs in turn.
Sports expert Petter Kukkonen believes that Hirvonen and Herola are in the best shape of the season at Salppur. He reminds that the Finnish duo did well in Lahti a year ago as well.
– Now we are applying for still lifes for the Olympics. In previous seasons, there have been competitions relatively often, but this season only one. It will be interesting to see where it goes.
Lahti World Cup program
shows all the competition events on its channels and they are followed moment by moment in the app and on Urheilu’s website.
Friday 1.3.
9.55 Hill jumping, women, 1st round (HS130)
10.55 Hill jumping, women, 2nd round
2:40 p.m. Qualifying cross-country pair sprint (p)
16.40 Cross-country skiing pair sprint finals (p)
16.40 Hill jumping, men, qualifying (HS130)
17.55 Hill jumping, men, 1st round
19.10 Hill jumping, men, 2nd round
Saturday 2.3.
9.50 Cross-country skiing, women, 20 km split start (p)
11.25 Combined, men, hill section of the pair sprint (HS130)
12.55 Cross-country skiing, men, 20 km split start (p)
15.15 Combined, men, the skiing part of the pair sprint
17.10 Hill jumping, men’s team competition, 1st round (HS130)
18.20 Hill jumping, men’s team competition, 2nd round
Sunday 3.3.
10.10 Cross-country skiing, sprint qualifying (v)
10.55 Combined, men, hill section (HS130)
12.40 Cross-country skiing, sprint heats (v)
14.55 Combined, men, skiing section (10 km)
16.55 Hill jumping, men, 1st round (HS130)
18.10 Hill jumping, men, 2nd round