Focus on World Championships - After Tour Sensation, Vermeulen is "Even Hungrier"

Focus on World Championships - After Tour Sensation, Vermeulen is 'Even Hungrier'

Cross-country skier Mika Vermeulen draws confidence from his second place finish at the Tour de Ski and is now focused on upcoming highlights. The athlete from Styria aims to aim for stars during the World Championships in his adopted home of Norway in a few weeks, and he also wants to compete for top ranks in the overall World Cup standings. However, first, he plans a short recovery phase in Ramsau.

Vermeulen expresses pride in his performance at the Tour, stating, "At first, it's pure satisfaction that all the hard work is paying off. It's incredible and very beautiful." He mentioned that placing second behind top star Johannes Hösflot Kläbo, with whom he can now converse fluently in Norwegian, has given him tremendous motivation. "It also drives me to work even harder, and this year, I see potential for improvement in my preparation," he noted.

Despite not securing his dream first World Cup victory yet, Vermeulen remains eager. "The goal remains the same; I want to win at some point. I always talk big, but I'm humble too. I know what it means to be second at the Tour de Ski. I don't underestimate that; it makes me proud."

Additionally, he has set his sights on the World Championships at the end of February in Trondheim and plans to compete in all World Cups leading up to that point. He emphasized, "The primary focus is to stay healthy, resume training quickly, and compete, compete, compete. I hope one day the stars will align perfectly for me." Another ambitious target is to place in the top five of the overall World Cup rankings.

Vermeulen is noted as the only Austrian to feature on the podium of the Tour, which has been held 19 times. In 2013/14, Johannes Dürr also reached the podium, securing third place, but later faced controversy.