Miro Karppanen did the skiing of his life and grabbed the scalp of his friend Remi Lindholm.
– This is a big reward mentally for thousands of hours of work.
That’s the atmosphere Miro Karpanen25, on Saturday in Kuusamo.
The Finnish skier, relatively unknown to the general public, made the performance of his life when he was 26th in the 10 km traditional intermediate start race of the Ruka World Cup.
– It felt bad, but I managed to ski and make a smooth stroke.
Before Saturday, Karppase had six starts in the World Cup. The best ranking was 54th. He has been fifth at the best in the championships on normal distances. In free sprint, there is SM silver from the Imatra Games from 2022.
– I have been training in the same way for years and all the time I have improved a little. When you are not the most talented guy in endurance sports, it takes longer for the qualities to develop, Karppanen commented.
– Now I have developed to such a level that on a good day I can ski in the top 30 in the World Cup on a normal distance, he adds.
with Lindholm
Miro Karppanen did the skiing of his life on Saturday in Kuusamo. Pasi Liesimaa
Karpanen trains about a thousand hours a season. The number of hours is only higher than the Finns who competed in Ruka Iivo Niskanen and At Remi Lindholm.
– I’m betting that there is no need to increase the number terribly anymore. When you keep it here and get quality, you can develop.
Lindholm, a teammate of Imatra’s athletes and who lives in the same village in Vuokatti, is Karppanen’s friend. The men train together for hundreds of hours this season as well. They traveled to Ruka from Kainuu on Wednesday in the same car ride.
– Let’s at least try to beat Remi sometimes. He’s tougher in the free, so if I can beat him in the joint start of the 20 km free in Ruka on Sunday, we’ll be really strong.
Humorist Lindholm doesn’t understand his friend’s words that the marching order is changing.
– It can’t be like that, Lindholm announced.
On Saturday, Lindholm was 41. He lost to Karppase by 20 seconds.
His own coach
Remi Lindholm got a kick from his friend Miro Karppase. He was the weakest Finn in Saturday’s competition. Pasi Liesimaa
Karpanen coaches himself.
– After the army, it somehow felt natural and started rolling. All possible mistakes have been made here over the years. When they are not repeated, we are on the verge of real work, says Karppanen.
What has been the worst mistake?
– I don’t know what’s the worst, but I’ve tried everything and sometimes I’ve gone into the woods. But when you’ve been skiing more or less seriously for twenty years, you’ve probably learned to know your body: how to train during the competition season to get the most out of the competition.
What kind of trip do you expect to get the best result in the World Cup in the future?
– A traditional joint departure could be the best trip. On the way, we will fight and at the end we will resolve.
THE FACTS
Men’s 10 km (p):
1. Martin Nyenget, Norway 23.31.7
2. Iivo Niskanen, Finland, +2.9
3. Erik Valnes, Norway, +9.7
4. Påå Golberg, Norway, +10.8
5. Andrew Musgrave, Great Britain, +16.5
6. Harald Amundsen, Norway, +29.0
…
17. Ristomatti Hakola, Finland, +45.3
19. Markus Vuorela, Finland, +45.8
21. Perttu Hyvärinen, Finland, +51.6
25. Lauri Vuorinen, Finland, +55.5
26. Miro Karppanen, Finland, +57.2
28. Juuso Haarala, Finland, +1.05,9
30. Ville Ahonen, Finland, +1.09,6
32. Emil Liekari, Finland, +1.10,1
36. Niko Anttola, Finland, +1.12,6
37. Lauri Lepistö, Finland, +1.12,9
41. Remi Lindholm, Finland, +1.16.9
On Saturday, Miro Karppanen, who skied in the national group, was the sixth best Finn in Ruka’s ten. Pasi Liesimaa