Beito winner Andreas Fjorden Ree will be allowed to go two distances, while Jan Thomas Jenssen will have to settle for one distance in the World Cup opener in cross-country skiing at the weekend. The first race takes place on Friday.
Ree has been selected for both the 10 kilometer classic and the 20 kilometer joint start in free technique in Ruka, Finland. The 24-year-old from Støren won Sunday’s 10 kilometers in free technique in the national cross-country opening at Beitostølen. On Saturday, he came fourth in the classic 10-kilometer race.
Important for WC withdrawal
Jan Thomas Jenssen came eighth in classical and fifth in skating at Beito. Thus he has to settle for the latter discipline in Finland. Jenssen would probably have liked to have taken part in the classic as well since it is a 10 kilometer classic which is the WC distance in Trondheim later this winter, and Saturday’s race is a very important selection race for the WC.
Jenssen won the 20 kilometers in Ruka in the World Cup last season.
However, there will be no Anne Kjersti Kalvå in Ruka. The Trønderjenta was only number 11 in classic at Beitostølen, and she stood over Sunday’s 10 kilometers in free technique.
– The body did not respond as desired during the season opener at Beitostølen. She will now prioritize training at home and return to competition when she is ready for this, says national team doctor Ove Feragen in a press release.
Kjelsås girl in
Kjelsås runner Nora Sanness gets the chance in Sunday’s 20 kilometers in free technique after she finished sixth in the 10 kilometers at Beitostølen on Sunday. Her big ambition is to fight for a place on the five-mile team in the WC.
– It was a good day for me, she said after Sunday’s race.
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo and Therese Johaug are of course also ready for the World Cup start in Finland. There are also Ane Appelkvist Stenseth and Heidi Weng who both won races at Beitostølen last weekend.
Read also: The Kjelsås runner is chasing a WC place
Preempted
Klæbo, Erik Valnes, Pål Golberg and Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget were all pre-selected for the 10 kilometer classic in Finland. The last two places went to the aforementioned Ree, as well as national team athlete Simen Hegstad Krüger.
Harald Østberg Amundsen is also there. Amundsen is guaranteed a place in all World Cup races before Christmas as the overall winner of last year’s World Cup.
Emil Iversen and Silje Theodorsen are also ready for the World Cup races before Christmas as winners of last season’s Scandinavian Cup.
In the men’s sprint class, Sivert Wiig and Oskar Opstad Vike also get the opportunity. None of them are national team athletes.
Also read comment: Johaug’s comeback lifts Heidi Weng
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THE FACTS
Selection for the Cross-Country World Cup in Finland:
10 km classic Friday:
Women: Therese Johaug (Nansen), Heidi Weng (BUL), Lotta Udnes Weng (Nes), Kristin Austgulen Fosnæs (Fossum), Astrid Øyre Slind (Oppdal), Tiril Udnes Weng (Nes), Silje Theodorsen (Kvaløysletta).
Men: Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (Byåsen), Erik Valnes (Bardufoss and surroundings), Pål Golberg (Gol), Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget (Lillehammer), Simen Hegstad Krüger (Lyn), Andreas Fjorden Ree (Støren), Harald Østberg Amundsen (Asker), Emil Iversen (Varden).
Sprint Classic Saturday:
Women: Julie Myhre (Byåsen), Fosnæs, T. Udnes Weng, L. Udnes Weng, Ane Appelkvist Stenseth (Grong), Hedda Østberg Amundsen (Asker).
Men: Klæbo, Valnes, Even Northug (Strindheim), Håvard Solås Taugbøl (Lillehammer), Sivert Wiig (Gjesdal), Oskar Opstad Vike (Runar), Amundsen, Iversen.
20 km free technique Sunday:
Women: Johaug, Weng, L. Udnes Weng, Fosnæs, Slind, Theodorsen, Nora Sannes (Kjelsås),
Men: Klæbo, Golberg, Nyenget, Krüger, Ree, Jan Thomas Jenssen (Hommelvik), Amundsen, Emil Iversen
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