Aino-Kaisa Saarinen Surprised by Therese Johaug's Explanation—Skeptical Comments on Iivo Niskanen

What’s going on?

Yle Sports' cross-country skiing expert Aino-Kaisa Saarinen is intrigued by the interesting start of the women's season. By Christmas, there have been eight competitions, with six different winners. Only Therese Johaug and Jonna Sundling have taken two victories each.

– There was talk of Johaug returning and winning everything. The start of the season has been interesting, as this has not happened. Sunday’s competition in Davos reflected a balanced start to the season. Johaug started strong, but two tougher competitors passed her, Saarinen noted.

Norway’s Astrid Øyre Slind took victory, and Finland’s Kerttu Niskanen also surpassed the discarded Johaug to finish third.

The Highs and Lows of the Season

Of course, the start of the season also included two unusually large victories: Johaug in the skiathlon in Lillehammer and Frida Karlsson in the 10-kilometer race in Ruka.

Astrid Øyre Slind (center) celebrated her first World Cup victory on Sunday. Also on the podium for the first time this season was Kerttu Niskanen (left). Therese Johaug (right) did not win, despite many predictions. Image: EPA-EFE

An Interesting Situation

This weekend also brought some bewilderment regarding Therese Johaug. NRK reported that Johaug felt unwell during the competition. Johaug admitted to NRK that she vomited on her skis and racing suit.

The Norwegian superstar explained her vomiting as a result of altitude sickness, having not faced higher elevations for some time. Davos is located over 1,500 meters above sea level.

NRK expert Fredrik Aukland noted that he had never seen Johaug so fatigued as she was on Sunday.

– It was a tough race. It’s been a long time since I skied at a high altitude. I possibly started too hard, Johaug said to Norway's Viaplay.

Aino-Kaisa Saarinen found Johaug’s claim of altitude sickness to be unusual and surprising.

– Johaug has been at high altitudes many times throughout her career, Saarinen wondered.

Johaug's explanation raised many questions.

– Did they come to Davos with a short preparation time? I too have come to high altitudes with only a day of preparation and still skied to the podium. Is Johaug falling ill? Saarinen speculated.

In other interviews, Johaug no longer referenced Davos's altitude, merely saying she started too fast and vomited. This was also stated by the Norwegian newspaper VG.

Saarinen expounded that Johaug just seemed to have fatigued early due to her aggressive start pace.

A Surprise?

For Aino-Kaisa Saarinen, the biggest surprise this weekend was Finland’s leading ladies Kerttu Niskanen and Krista Pärmäkoski. Niskanen finished second, and Pärmäkoski fourth.

– Kerttu stated herself that she has experienced a difficult start to the season. Now she has had an exceptionally challenging season start. I expected both Kertu and Krista to improve their pace, but this was a significant improvement from previous competitions. They both seem to be on track. All skiing followers can start to celebrate Christmas with peace of mind, Saarinen observed.

Kerttu Niskanen celebrated her second-place finish. Niskanen admitted to feeling relieved about the result. Image: EPA-EFE

The Flop?

The Finnish weekend was a dichotomy.

On Sunday, the Finns had their chance on their favorite distances. As a result, there were two podium finishes, as in the men’s race, Iivo Niskanen also finished second in the 20-kilometer time trial in traditional skiing style.

On Saturday, the races contested were the freestyle sprints ahead of this season's World Championships.

Saarinen considers that the men's sprints were the weekend's flop. Only four Finns made it to the elimination phase, finishing in the top 30: Jasmi Joensuu (5th), Niilo Moilanen (14th), Katri Lylynperä (20th), and Lauri Vuorinen (25th).

Joensuu was very close to a rare podium finish for Finland. Aino-Kaisa Saarinen herself was the last Finnish woman on the podium in a women's freestyle sprint race in the World Cup, which occurred in Davos in 2009.

According to Saarinen, Joensuu is starting to stabilize her place in sprint finals as her endurance increases, considering normal distance races as well. The Finnish team still has a lot to work on.

– Freestyle sprint, oh no! There are good things on that distance, but we’re only taking baby steps forward. There is a lot of work to be done on that distance, Saarinen explained.

Joensuu was very close to a rare podium finish for Finland – see the finish results.

What’s Next?

The cross-country skiers are now heading into a Christmas break. After the New Year, the Tour de Ski will take place, which is exceptionally only in Italy. The competition locations will be Toblach and Val di Fiemme.

Saarinen believes that the success expectations are directed towards Finnish women Krista Pärmäkoski and Kerttu Niskanen. She is confident that successes at high altitude in Davos will progress their fitness and that the level will rise in other races too.

Regarding Iivo Niskanen, Aino-Kaisa Saarinen is more skeptical.

– Iivo is strong in traditional normal distance races, but the Tour requires other skills and strong performance. That alone will not be enough, Saarinen claims.

Sunday's second place was, in Saarinen's view, a decent performance from Iivo Niskanen. The Norwegian winner Martin Löwström Nyenget seemed to have the flow state. He would have been hard to beat.

– For Iivo, a basic "okay" performance is not enough for victory. He needs to do better to secure wins as he did in Ruka, Saarinen assesses.

Updated at 7:24 AM. Added Johaug's comments to VG.

Iivo Niskanen finished behind Martin Löwström Nyenget!