PLANICA (VG) Johannes Høsflot Klæbo (26) feared that the WC season could end due to a troublesome hamstring. With the physiotherapist Megan Stowe, the problem has disappeared, and the duo have also worked on the upper body.
– The difference from where we started last autumn is marked. He has so much more flexibility and his strength is better. His whole body is more balanced with more strength in the most relevant muscles for skiing, Stowe told VG after Klæbo and Pål Golberg won the team sprint.
The back of the thigh troubled the trønder from July until the beginning of the season. In fact, it was so bad that Klæbo thought there was a chance that the entire WC season could end a few days before the first race of the winter in November.
For four periods throughout the autumn and winter, Klæbo has paid out of his own pocket for physiotherapist Megan Stowe to come from the USA to Europe to treat him. She worked for a number of years with the NBA team Milwaukee Bucks (basketball).
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They have got their hoarding in order, Klæbo has taken two golds and one silver so far in the WC, as well as winning the Tour de Ski and 14 World Cup victories (shared record in one season).
Lately, Stowe and Klæbo have started to develop other parts of his body as well, the most important work tool together with the skis he has under his legs.
– We have worked a lot with the pectoral muscles, the broad back muscle and the rotator cuff (muscle group in the shoulders). He is very stiff in his chest muscles and he doesn’t have much strength in his back muscles. So we have worked a lot with functional strength training for the back, says Stowe.
– We look at a total with a view to how you can become a better skier. Then you have to start somewhere. For now, the focus is still mostly on hoarding, so we’ll see if it can become more relevant with more parts after the season, says Klæbo.
On Monday, she went back to the United States after being with the Norwegian for about two weeks. At the athletes’ hotel over the border in Italy, the Ski Association has set aside a separate room where the duo have been every day.
– If you have a muscle that is very stiff, you don’t get enough blood and oxygen in it. Then you don’t have the opportunity to get much strength out of the muscle. As he has gained better mobility, he has gained more strength, explains Stowe.
She points out that the muscle between the shoulders, called the interscapular, is always in an “extended position” due to skiing.
– By getting better stability in these muscles, you avoid using your neck and shoulders too much. We’ve fine-tuned a lot of muscles that will give him better balance, and that helps avoid any kind of strain injuries, says Stowe.
– How would you describe his body as an athlete?
– His body is very strong and fast. He recovers so much faster now.
When the physio arrived two weeks ago, she massaged deeply until the muscles began to relax, while during the competition period she has worked more carefully on the “surface”.
– I felt he got mad at me because I pushed hard and he hit his head on the massage table because he didn’t want to swear and say bad words. He was in so much pain, Stowe says, laughing.
– How is Klæbo to work with compared to other big stars you have worked with, basket stars Giannis Antetokounmpobasket stars Giannis AntetokounmpoConsidered one of the world’s best basketball players, 211 centimeters tall and known for his enormous physique. Has the nickname “Greek Freak”. for example?
– Johannes is the most professional. He is so disciplined with sleep, exercise and nutrition. And so smart. He is like a sponge. He wants to learn and develop.
After the WC and the season is over, they will look at how the collaboration will be going forward.
– She is the person I have met with the most knowledge when it comes to such things. I am very happy and lucky to have met Megan. She really has a passion for this, says Klæbo.
