Is Iivo Niskanen Celebrating a World Championship Medal with an Olympic Photographer? Lauri Vuorinen Admits a Tickling Perspective

Lauri Vuorinen excelled in a traditional sprint competition and mentioned he has invested effort in classical technique for the World Championship team sprint. On Thursday, ahead of the season opener in Oloksa, Iivo Niskanen defined his solid goal for this season: winning a medal in Trondheim in February and March, competing in the 10-kilometer classical individual start, team sprint in classical style, and in the relay.

Should the team for the world championship team sprint be chosen now, Iivo Niskanen would ski alongside Lauri Vuorinen.

Vuorinen clinched second place in the classical sprint on Friday in Oloksa, beating one of the world's best sprinters, Italy's Federico Pellegrino. However, Norway's Erik Valnes was too strong this time.

After the competition, Yle Sports spoke with Vuorinen, who admitted to having heavily focused on classical technique ahead of the team sprint, although the individual world sprint will be skied freestyle. "Classical is my strength. We are not going to compromise for freestyle. The team sprint is equally important as the freestyle sprint. It’s actually a much more realistic event for a medal than the freestyle sprint," Vuorinen conceded.

Vuorinen had an intriguing summer job as he served as the photographer for the Finnish team at the Paris Olympics for about three weeks. He headed straight from Paris to roller ski competitions in Trondheim, finishing fourth in the Toppidrettsvekan sprint race, outpacing even Norway's superstar Johannes Høsflot Klæbo.

Before the race, he managed to undergo one solid workout, despite not having been on roller skis recently. "I got back into the training rhythm pretty quickly. I had trained a lot before Paris. I realized that those two weeks in Paris didn’t diminish my fitness," Vuorinen shared.

He smiled after Friday’s race, relieved to have made it ahead of Pellegrino in the tight contest. "It was a good race today. Challenging conditions. One lane was practically open. I had to make it a see-through ski. I conserved my energy for the final sprint. I thought I could use one push through the dense snow, and it worked out well," Vuorinen reported.

Overall, there were four Finnish men on the starting line against Valnes and Pellegrino in the finals, with Niilo Moilanen finishing last. He faced serious injuries last July after a roller ski collision with a cyclist, resulting in several fractures to his face and jaw area; however, his protective helmet saved him from severe injuries. He now sports a scar on his chin as a reminder of the accident.

"I’ve recovered well. Can’t complain. A little street credibility with a small dent in my chin. Not bad; doesn’t bother me," Moilanen told Yle Sports.

Jasmi Joensuu won the women’s sprint final, defeating German racers Laura Gimmler and Coletta Rydzek. Joensuu’s winning strategy in the snowy Oloksa was an old classic ski. "We dug it out 28 minutes before the quarter-finals. Three service men prepped it for the race quickly. Kuisma Taipaletta must be thanked for his coolness. It was a bit panic-driven as all other skis were freezing. I told Kuisma to take the old classic. I like skiing with it," Joensuu explained to Yle Sports.

In the qualifiers, Joensuu wasn’t the fastest Finnish skier, as Amanda Saari edged ahead of her. "I messed up a bit in the qualifiers with my ski when the snow began falling. It was frustrating because I knew I was in much better shape," Joensuu remarked.

Joensuu has entered the world championship season without major setbacks, providing her with confidence and peace of mind regarding her performance. She believes this could be the season of her first World Cup podium finish, assuming she can deliver four solid runs on the sprint day.

She mentioned not being bothered that the World Championship sprint will be skied freestyle, stating, "I actually prefer freestyle more. It’s not so dependent on the conditions. I might be better in classical, but I find skiing freestyle fun."