Teemu Virtanen and Susanna Ylinen’s 24-hour skiing World Record attempt is underway. Watch here on ProXCskiing.com!

The World Record attempt was planned to start on Sunday but was moved to Tuesday morning. Now, encouraged by the latest weather forecasts, the skiers have settled today’s start date, and the conditions look perfect for breaking records.

Below is Maastohiihto.com’s announcement about the 24-hour skiing World Record attempt, published on Friday:

The 24-hour skiing World Record attempt was originally planned for January, but the cold conditions forced it to be moved to March 17. Once again, the date changed. The start date is now planned for Monday, March 18, 2024.

“This is hard mentally when the start date changes all the time. It’s been like this every year, so I’m already used to these changes. Last winter, the attempt was supposed to be made at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, but the weather didn’t give me the chance even then. I moved the event to Vaajakoski in Jyväskylä on a fast schedule, and for that, a big thank you to Juha Tuikkanen and the local organizer. Even then, we were nervous about the possible start date, and maybe we started one day too late when it was too warm during the day,” Teemu reflects on his past attempt.

Hans Mäenpää’s official Guinness World Record is 472km 007m. At Levi, Anni Angeria also broke the women’s world record, now 375 km 564 m. Susanna Ylinen is set to break this record simultaneously with Teemu. Susanna will have her track, and she also has the option to ski next to the track using the free skiing technique.

“Now, on Friday, the weather forecasts look promising, but you can only partially trust them. The start of next week is the final deadline; however, as the weather looks set to warm up here in the South after that, the city needs to prepare the stadium for the upcoming football season. If the weather turns bad now and the World Record attempt is missed, I will go to Sweden for the Nordenskiöldsloppet in a week. I called the organizers yesterday, and they are ready to accept me for that 220km ski race, which I have skied for many years.”

Susanna also admits that waiting is nerve-wracking. She hopes she can already get on the track to experience a unique adventure that she has yet to experience.

“I’m starting with confidence, but the journey is so long that you must respect it. Of course, I have done many ultra-challenges, but this one-day skiing is new. Of course, chasing a World Record also brings some tension. I want to proceed in a planned way while enjoying the journey. I’m sure that the atmosphere in the stadium will give you a kick, and now there’s even sunshine on Tuesday,” Susanna says about her last-minute mood.

The 24-hour skiing World Record attempt will be broadcast on ISTV, and the live stream will also be available in the international media. The broadcast also includes 24 H Studio, where host Ari Sakari Tuukkanen interviews guests in Finnish and English. Among the guests, you will see the top of the skiing world, local influencers, and people behind the attempt to make the World Record. You can come to watch the event on-site and encourage the skiers towards World Records.

Read more about Teemu Virtanen’s 24-hour skis and other challenges here. Susanna Ylinen can be followed on Instagram.