Kris Freeman About Last Season, Training Adjustments And The Upcoming World Cup and Olympics In Torino
The 2004-05 World Cup season did not go as Kris Freeman had hoped for. The World Championships in Germany were disappointing, but he still managed to show glimpses of his potential in post Worlds races and signaled that better things are yet to come. His training is going well; he is feeling good and seems ready to challenge the Worlds best skiers. FasterSkier.com asked him some questions.
 and I had no chance in the classic portion of the race. I made up at least 10 spots in a strong skate performance but the damage was done and I skied to 45th place. </p><p>I had no more races for a long time and I began to train and get ready for the World Championships. This training period actually went very well and I was feeling great…right up until the pre-worlds world cup. That night I came down with flu. The flu stuck with me for three weeks which included the World Champs. I raced only twice in Oberstdorf turning in a pitiful performance in the pursuit and a decent but not good race in the relay. I had a slight fever for both events. </p><p>After the relay I sat down with Trond (Head coach Trond Nystad) and we decided the only thing for me to do at this point was to rest. I stopped training. I would ski once a day for 30 to 60 minutes and that was it. That was my routine leading up to Lahti which was my best race of the season. I remember thinking during that race, “Wow! Unbelievable! my body is actually clearing lactate again!” I took the race as I sign that my body was in shape during Worlds it was just hampered by the fever. The next week at the Holmenkollen I turned in another solid performance finishing 27th. However, that 50k was the last straw for my beat up body. I never felt good last season after that.</p><p><b>What now Kris? You created lots of excitement with some great races at the 2003 Worlds, but have struggled to match or improve those results. You have shown in both relays and individual races that you have the necessary technique, heart and guts to be podium contender. What have you learned from the last three seasons, what are you adjusting in your training to physically be ready to reach the podium in World Cup races?</b></p><p>My primary focus this training year has been to not over-do it. I have been taking more rest days and toned down the intensity in my schedule. I did have some great races at the 2003 Worlds but I feel that my best season was actually the 2003-2004 season. I turned in the best race of my career in Toblach that year. I finished 6th place in a 30k mass freestyle and was less than a second from the win. I also had more than a dozen top thirty races and a 5th place in a 15k classic in Davos. I finished the year ranked 27th overall and was finally in the red group. I felt that the season was a great step forward from the 2002-2003 season where I had a few isolated good races but not a complete season. Last year was the first poor season I have had to come to terms with and I have learned a lot from it. The most important is that I always have to listen to my body and rest and recovery is always the most important part of a training plan. With that in mind I feel that my training has gone very well this summer and that I am in the best shape I have ever been at this point of the year. I am ready to step up on the podium this season. </p><p><BR><center><img src=)
Kris, far left, finishing 6th in Toblach
How has your summer training been going?
I traveled to Park City from New Hampshire a few weeks before the New Zealand camp to acclimatize. My focus there as it has been all year was on easy volume. In
New Zealand I trained 82 hours in 24 days, 77 of which were skiing on snow. I raced three times. The first was a pursuit that I was leading by 40 seconds only 5k in. However I made a wrong turn and lost 3 minutes before I made it back on the course. The second was a 15k classic time-trial that the entire US Ski Team participated in. I won by 1:47. I was very happy with this effort. The last race was a 35k mass start skate that I won by several minutes. I was able to race this well, while training about 25 hours a week so I was very pleased with my fitness level. Since returning from New Zealand I have been resting and training lightly in preparation for an intensity camp at Lake Placid starting September 11th.
What's you strategy for the upcoming December World Cup races in Canada?
– My strategy is to come into the races very rested and show the Euros what its like to race across seas by kicking their asses.
What distances are you focusing on in the 2006 Olympics in Torino?
– My primary focus is on the 15k classic but I will also race the pursuit and relay.
If I have anything left I will race the 50k skate as well which is the last race at the Olympics.
Thanks Kris, and good luck this season.
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