It’s almost two years since a Norwegian male skier won a skate sprint race. The sprint World Cup opener in Düsseldorf is less than three weeks away and the Norwegian sprint coach Ulf Morten Aune wants to do something about that.
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– I believe that we can win, but that remains to be seen, says Aune.</p>
<p>Tor Arne Hetland won the skate sprint in Clusone, Italy in December 2002, no Norwegian man has climbed to the top in World Cup sprint after that. Norway was the dominating sprint nation at the start of the new millennium, but their sprinters have lost ground along, with the all-rounders, in skating compared to classic.</p>
<p>– We discussed after the season was over why we are not performing as well in skating as in classic and concluded that there were many factors that could explain the reason.</p>
<p>Aune is pointing to factors like strength, technique, explosiveness, max speed, ski-choice and confidence.</p>
<p>– It’s not one single reason, but the sum of those factors, says Aune.</p>
<p>The sprinters have for that reason focused a great deal on those factors in their training this summer and fall, and the coach is pleased with what he has seen so far.</p>
<p>– It’s clear progress.</p>
<p>Technique coach</p>
<p>Egil Kristiansen has been assistant coach and technique coach for the women’s team the last couple years. He now also has the responsibility of helping the male sprinters ahead of this season. He doesn’t believe that the technique has prevented the sprinters from winning.</p>
<p>– I don’t think it’s necessarily the technique that prevented them from winning, at least not our supposedly best sprinters, but for some it might have been a limiting factor, says Kristiansen.</p>
<p>– Are you prioritizing other factors in the technique work with the sprinters versus those who are racing longer distances?</p>
<p>– The sprinters are skiing deeper, since they need to create more power, but the motions are the same.</p>
<p>Kristiansen has participated in some of the sprint team’s camps and are then intensifying the technique training.</p>
<p>– We are doing small blocks with high technique focus before the skiers work on their own for so to give us feedback on their progress.</p>
<p>The main reason why the coach believes that the chances for future success is high also in skating are however not very complicated.</p>
<p>Â -Â They have focused more on skating in their training and are skating more than in the past, says Kristiansen.</p>
<p>New method for ski selection</p>
<p>One of the other factors that sprint coach Aune is hopeful that will help them improve, is equipment. The sprinters are starting with a new method of testing and choosing equipment ahead of the competitions.</p>
<p>– Traditionally we tested skis before the start of a competition and choose those who felt the best. What’s more important is which skis are bringing you the fastest from A to B. That’s not necessarily the pair that feels the best, says Aune. </p>
<p>The skier will now from the start of the season, try to find which skis that work best in each different condition. The method to decide that is old fashioned stopwatch timing, to simply find which ski you are skiing the fastest with.</p>
<p>Behind the skiers is the new wax team that Aune is very hopeful will contribute in finding the right skis.</p>
<p>Note: Marit Bjorgen has taken care of winning most everything there is to win in both skating and classic sprints among the women. On the longer distances you need on the other hand to go back to January 18, 2003 to find a Norwegian woman that won a skate race. Bente Skari won on that date the 10-kilometer skate race in Nove Mesto. The last Norwegian man that won a regular distance skate race was Thomas Alsgaard on March 16, 2002 when he won the 50-kilometer in Holmenkollen, Oslo. Current national team skier Kristen Skjeldal was second. Â Â </p>
<p>Â Source: Langrenn.com</p>
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It’s almost two years since a Norwegian male skier won a skate sprint race. The sprint World Cup opener in Düsseldorf is less than three weeks away and the Norwegian sprint coach Ulf Morten Aune wants to do something about that.