It will be a different season for Elvira Öberg, with her older sister Hanna expecting a baby and not racing this winter. “I think it was the 2018/2019 season that I last raced without her. So in that way it will definitely be a special season,” she says.

By Elvira Öberg’s standards, last season was uneven. Brilliant performances – such as three World Cup wins – were mixed with mediocre results. At the Olympics, she was not at her best.

“I was affected a lot by illness last summer and fall, and I also had a period of illness before Christmas,” says Öberg to Langd.se, and continues:

“Looking back at the World Cup races, my results were worse when I had problems with illness. The times I had better conditions and could do the preparation I wanted, it usually went very well.”

“Not all the pieces fell into place”

She left the Olympics with a silver medal in the relay. Her best individual race was sixth place in the mass start, and Sweden won no individual medals in the women’s events at the Games.

“Of course I would have liked the Olympics to go better, but I also can’t say that I could have done anything differently in my preparation or similar. I really did what I could, but unfortunately not all the pieces fall into place every time anyway. It’s a complex sport we do, so it’s difficult.”

However, she is not very worried about where she stands ahead of this season. Elvira Öberg has been healthy and free of injuries and has been able to train as she wanted. At the Swedish rollerski championships, she won one gold and one silver, and at the Loop-One festival in Munich she finished second.

“I will miss Hanna”

What is different instead is that her older sister Hanna is not racing this winter.

“We have trained together a lot in the past, so of course it has been different during the summer and fall. And I will miss her on the course. But we have still seen each other almost every day, even if it’s not at training.”

Also Read – Olympic star reveals: Pregnant

13 World Cup wins

With 13 World Cup wins, Elvira Öberg is tied for second all-time among Swedes with the most wins. Only Magdalena Forsberg has more.

Her main goals this season are both the World Championships in Otepää in February – she has a gold (in the mass start) and a silver (in the pursuit) to defend from the 2025 World Championships in Lenzerheide – and the overall World Cup. No Swede has won it since Helena Ekholm did so in the 2008/2009 season. Hanna Öberg finished second last year and Elvira Öberg fourth.

“Before Christmas, the full focus is on the World Cup. Then we’ll see how it has gone and take things a bit more as they come after Christmas. Step one is to stay healthy and try to race as much as possible. If I manage that and it has gone well before Christmas, I definitely want to fight for the overall title. Since the championships are at low altitude this year, there is the opportunity to race everything.”

An even season ahead

Who will be your toughest rivals this winter?

“I think it will be an even season. It feels like quite a lot of athletes can be in the fight. There is a whole group of French women, and some Norwegians will surely be there too. And I think Vittozzi will be dangerous this winter.”

What is it like to race a season if it is very even? Is it extra inspiring?

“It’s a bit of both. But of course it’s fun if it’s even and you are fighting at the top all the way. I think I have the capacity and also the experience to fight all the way. I know what the challenges are.”

Risks with the new rules

New safety rules at the range have forced her to change her routines there, since athletes are no longer allowed to start taking off the rifle before they are on the mat.

“It has been a process to adjust. When I first heard about the new rules, I just felt, what? I wasn’t very excited about it, and maybe I’m still not. But you have had to change your routines and simply accept the situation.”

How does it affect you?

“Before, I could calmly put my arm through the sling before I was on the mat. Now we have to do that step on the mat instead, and that adds one more thing to do in a very short time. There is a small risk of getting caught in the bib, and you have to fiddle a bit more.”

How does it affect the shooting?

“It takes a little longer to the first shot. Maybe a second or so. But it’s the same for everyone, and we have known about this since June. I have had time to relearn and have a routine that works and that I feel quite confident with.”

“We can’t demand to win the Nations Cup”

Both your sister Hanna and Linn Gestblom will become mothers this winter and are not racing. How does that affect the relay team?

“It will be noticeable. We won the Nations Cup last year, and maybe you can’t demand that we do it this year. But we still have a very strong team with several other good athletes.”

The season opens here as soon as this coming weekend. What are you hoping for there?

“For me, it’s about getting a run-through, making sure the routines are in place and feeling the race nerves. I’m not at peak form and will have more to give this winter.”

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