– A lost year will be ten steps back – VG

Less than 40 minutes ago

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– We are not thinking about this right now, but I can say that if we get a season without FIS competitions, we will be on the edge of the precipice. A lost year for us will be ten steps back. No matter how good the competitors of Aleksandr Bolshunov and Natalya Neprjajeva are nationally, they will not be as strong as on the world stage, Välbe says in an interview with the newspaper Tele-sport.

As a result of Russia’s war against Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian athletes are banned from almost all international sports. The International Ski Federation (FIS) decided, after much pressure from several Norwegian profiles, among others, that the Russians were not allowed to go the last races in the World Cup this winter.

Välbe says the Russian cross-country skiers must be prepared for several scenarios for the future.

– In any case, we must be ready for both plan A and plan B, both for us to be able to participate in international competitions and for us to be in Russia for one year. Everything should be treated with understanding, not panic, says Välbe.

Langrenn.com mentioned the statements first in Norway.

She envisions that there may be many races in Russia next winter. This week is the Russian championship where Belarusian athletes participate. Välbe wants to facilitate that Kazakh and Chinese athletes can also compete in Russia.

– Our doors are open to everyone, says Välbe.

Several in the ski elite have responded to signals Bolshunov, captain of Putin’s own army, has sent on social media and that he was present during the big the celebration of the Crimean annexation last week. Ssponsors and equipment suppliers have ended their cooperation with the Russians.

FIS’s cross-country skiing manager, Pierre Mignerey, reserves the right that the Russians do not have total freedom and believes that one should be careful not to react too quickly.

– I hope that the World Cup in cross-country skiing will be a place where we gather people, not divide them, Mignerey says.

Välbe is himself a Putin supporter and has previously appeared with Putin’s shirt in a VG interview.

Last year, Välbe and several previous sports profiles added parliamentary elections as a candidate for the United Russia, which is Vladimir Putin’s support party. But she quickly resigned.

Jelena Välbe is three times Olympic champion and 14 times world champion. She became World Cup queen in Trondheim in 1997, when she took gold in all five distances that existed at the time.

During the Olympic boycott Välbe Norwegian press after a commentator in NRK.

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