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Therese Johaug opens to become a coach.
But immediately closes the door for Sweden.
– We still do not want her, says length manager Anders Byström.
In Falun, Therese Johaug competed for the very last time. In recent years, the superb Norwegian has won basically everything that can be won, and ends his career with a total of 82 World Cup victories.
The next step for Johaug
Norway’s recent months have been marked by success. The Beijing Winter Olympics were a complete success for Therese Johaug, leaving the Games with as many as three individual gold medals. It was the absolute last thing missing from the merit list, and the big star puts the skis on the shelf as one of the foremost cross-country skiers of all time.
Photo: Tomi Hänninen / BILDBYRÅN
Since Therese Johaug announced that she is ending her career, there has been speculation about what she will come up with next. She has previously been open about wanting to become a mother, but a continued assignment in cross-country skiing is also something that attracts.
– It would have been very exciting. I am really passionate about skiing and know what it takes to go fast distance running. Becoming a coach is probably not the time, but I can definitely imagine being a mentor, she says at a press conference in Oslo.
Sour pass
On the other hand, she would never be able to imagine training in Sweden.
– What the hell. No, are you crazy ?, she says with a laugh and continues:
– I’m kidding a little. If I were to do that, it would be for Norwegian cross-country skiing. They have meant a lot to me and given me a lot during my career. Then it feels right to go back a bit.
When the Swedish length manager Anders Byström hears Therese Johaug’s sour pass, he takes it easy.
– Nice. We do not want her to Sweden, he says with a smile and continues:
– We have many Swedish female coaches that we will invest in before Therese Johaug. She does not have to wait for our call. But there is a vacancy in the Norwegian national team when Ole-Morten Iversen now quits, so she might go right in there, he says.
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