2021 FIS World Junior/U23 Championships
Vuokatti, Finland
February 9 – 14, 2021
For those that are interested in watching the Championships live, here is the live stream link: https://www.oz.com/jwsc2021. It is pay per view. 6.99€ per race or 17.99 € for the whole event. There is a good chance https://tv.nrk.no/programmer/sport will post it later, for free.
Feb 8th, 2021, Vuokatti:
With the frigid air and high humidity, the team braved the cold today. It was the day before the first race, the sprint, and nerves were running high. Being the day prior to the first event meant race prep. We had a great intensity session and had the pleasure of experiencing wearing nothing but a thin lycra suit in bitterly cold temperatures.
The physical training may have been over for the day, but not everything stopped there. After the workout we all took a more in depth look into tomorrow's course; analysing sections and participating in small group discussions. At this point all of us know that course better than we know our own names! The rest of the day, for me at least, consisted mostly of rest, recovery, and nonstop pre race jitters thinking about what’s to come tomorrow.
Excitement is in the air here in Vuokatti and we all can’t wait to kick-off the racing tomorrow.
Catch you on the trails!
by Joe Davies
Feb 7th, 2021, Vuokatti:
We woke up this morning to slightly warmer weather than in previous days. The high today was a balmy -6°C and the warm sun made the beautiful skiing even more amazing. For most, today was nothing too crazy training-wise. A short ski in the morning, perhaps taking the time to test some skis, then another short ski or run in the afternoon. Many of us athletes received a new pair of skis for having qualified for these events, and many were quite happy with their new equipment. I (Rémi Drolet) am very pleased with my new pair of classic skis, and I think it will be excellent in cold conditions. Hopefully, I can even use it later this week. For me, it was also great to get outside today, since I have been out with a cold for the past few days, and twiddling your thumbs before a championship is never pleasant.
There really is a lot more snow here than there was when I was in Lahti and in Falun in past weeks (reminds me of home), and it really makes it exciting to ski around and explore. The trails here feel cute somehow. It is a feeling I get in Scandinavia sometimes: of being in some small isolated corner of the world. The kilometers, however, are not lacking, and there is much more I have not yet seen here. Tomorrow, the preparations continue. For the junior athletes competing in the sprint, it will be the final day for them to tune up before making their way to the start line on Tuesday!
Happy skiing!
by Rémi Drolet
Feb 6th, 2021, Vuokatti:
It was a beautiful misty morning that began with intensity to prepare for racing in the following days. In the afternoon, some went for a ski or run and some did a zoom core session.
Skiing in the dark does not require a headlamp here as there are over 30 km of lit trails! Beside the ski trails is a frozen lake, on which you can ski, ice fish and of course take a polar dip! Each ‘cabin’ is equipped with a sauna, which we certainly will be taking advantage of.
Looking forward to exploring the tunnel and skiing across the lake tomorrow!
by Hannah Mehain
BC Athletes on the Canadian Team:
Juniors:
Joe Davies (Whistler Nordic Ski Club, Whistler)
Jasmine Drolet (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Rossland)
Molly Miller (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Kimberley)
Alexandra Luxmoore (Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club, Revelstoke)
U23s:
Elizabeth Elliott (Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club, Revelstoke)
Hannah Mehain (Sovereign Lake Nordic Club, Vernon)
Rémi Drolet (Black Jack Cross Country Ski Club, Rossland)
Annika Richardson (Hollyburn Cross Country Ski Club, North Vancouver)
Beth Granstrom (Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club, Revelstoke)
A fundraiser has also been set up to help BC athletes that subsequently qualify for the senior World Championships and World Cups this season: www.gofundme.com/f/road-to-the-fis-nordic-world-ski-championships
Go BC, Go Canada!
Previous posts:
February 4