After two gold medals from Frida Karlsson, two silver medals from Ebba Andersson, a gold medal from Linn Svahn, a silver medal from Jonna Sundling and a bronze medal from Maja Dahlqvist, Saturday’s women’s relay is another great medal opportunity for Sweden’s cross-country skiing women.
The team is a big favorite for gold.
– But there are four stages that take us from the beginning to the finish and a lot can happen. and there were rumors that the weather will change (the weather forecast says it could rain or snow). That’s why it’s important to be on your guard and do all the parts to perform well, says Ingemarsdotter.
Facts.This is how Sweden starts in the women’s 4×7.5 kilometer relay
Section 1, classic style: Linn Svahn
Stretch 2, classic style: Ebba Andersson
Course 3, freestyle: Frida Karlsson
Course 4, freestyle: Jonna Sundling
The formation of the team means this Sweden decides to leave out overall World Cup runner-up Moa Ilar.
– We had the feeling that this team was the strongest based on their form on the day. Moa was in the discussion until the end, but Linn has found tremendous form here on the way to the championship and she is classically sharp, so it was she who drew the longest straw this time, says women’s coach Stefan Thomson.
Ida Ingemarsdotter was part of the relay team that won Olympic gold in Sochi in 2014 – Sweden’s youngest member of a women’s relay team at the Olympics.
– At that time, no one in the journalist community believed that we would survive with an Olympic gold medal. So that’s what I mean by “relay” being “relay.” It’s about getting the job done completely. But these girls are sharp and alert and ready to fight for Sweden.
The coaches expect it that the driving is particularly hard on sections two and three. And they shaped the team afterwards. The “work machine” Ebba Andersson will do well in the second stage and then the hope is for Frida Karlsson in the third stage.
“We hope that Frida in this form will be able to put the opponents under really hard pressure,” says Thomson.
Jonna Sundling was responsible for a phenomenal performance down the home stretch as Sweden won gold at the World Championships last year.
– We feel confident that we’ll have Jonna Sundling in the end. “We know she’s strong in sprints,” Thomson continues.
Read more:
Worries about the men’s relay: “We have to hope for a miracle”
