OSLO, Norway – Joergen Aukland and fellow Norwegian Kjartan Roland were the original marathon specialists, who almost singlehandedly represented Norway consistently in the large international ski marathons outside of Norway.
But that was ten years ago. Today, thousands of Norwegians travel to marathons such as Italy’s Marcialonga, and the races now boast a number of high-profile athletes, including Aukland and his brother, Anders.
Both have fought for fame and glory, mostly for their own personal bragging rights, but with the launch of Ski Classics, they now have to consider their team – in this case, Team Xtra Personell. Ski Classics is a points-based competition running across all the season’s big marathons, with a Tour de France-style yellow jersey for the overall Ski Classic Champion, a pink jersey for the top racer under 25, a sprint jersey and a team jersey. Team points are awarded to the top two men and top two women in each race.
“It’s really exciting that we get something like this. I’ve dreamt about it for a decade. Now we can race even more like a team in the big marathons,” Joergen Aukland told Langrenn.com.