Max Novak confirms he will appeal disqualification

Max Novak confirms that he will appeal the disqualification issued after a confrontation with Ole Jörgen Bruvoll during the Ski Classics event Birkebeinerrennet.

With just one kilometer remaining in the race, Novak and seven other skiers were in a tight pack when he got caught in a messy situation with Bruvoll, causing him to lose ground. After finishing in seventh place, Novak was visibly upset and had a physical confrontation with Bruvoll at the finish line.

Later, it was announced that he had been disqualified for "unsportsmanlike conduct."

• "There were a lot of emotions in that moment, and it got out of hand," he said.

The decision will be appealed on Monday, as confirmed by Novak.

• "We're working on that. It should be submitted today," he stated.

Before the race, Novak was leading in the overall standings but has slipped to sixth place following the disqualification. He described his chances of winning the overall title as "minimal" after this disqualification.

If Novak were to regain his points from the weekend, it would greatly impact his standings moving forward.

• "According to the regulations, there are points stating that actions that do not affect the results should not lead to disqualification. Thus, we have several other cases where the jury did not act, which we will reference."

Three Ski Classics races remain this season, and after this past weekend, Novak now sits in sixth place overall, 261 points behind the leading Norwegian Amund Hoel.

• "I'm out training now and gearing up for the next race. We'll see what happens with the appeal," Novak added.