The historic 50km ITT race in Orsa Grönklitt produced an unexpected winner. Days later, reality still hasn’t fully caught up with the 22-year-old. Malte Jutterdal is now opening up about a possible future in Ski Classics.

Malte Jutterdal surprised many when he won the historic 50km ITT race in Orsa Grönklitt, marking his first victory in the Ski Classics Pro Tour. A few days after his triumph, it still feels unreal for the 22-year-old.

“It still feels unreal. But it’s really nice and fun to see that all the hard work has paid off and that I was able to show in a race what I’ve been feeling in training,” Jutterdal told Langd.se.

Also Read: Malte Jutterdal takes victory at historic Orsa Grönklitt 50k ITT

Long-distance focus mid-season

This season’s goal was to qualify for the U23 World Championships. When that didn’t happen, he decided to shift his focus toward long-distance races mid-season.

He first won the Västgötaloppet, followed by another victory at the Bessemerloppet, both Ski Classics Challengers events. At Vasaloppet, Jutterdal also delivered a solid performance, finishing in 50th place.

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Thanks to support from Ski Team Göhlins, he also signed up for the historic 50km ITT race in Orsa Grönklitt.

What was your goal going into the race?

“I didn’t have a specific result goal beforehand. I’ve always had an interest in long-distance races, and I find double poling really fun. It’s my strength in skiing. So, I just thought I would go out, have fun, and give it my all,” he said, adding:

“I tried to focus on my technique and maintain a high speed.”

A month of double poling training

After several weeks of focused training, Jutterdal began to feel that something special might be possible. That feeling was confirmed when the TV snowmobile started following him late in the race.

“With a few kilometers to go, the TV snowmobile came and followed me to the finish. Someone was standing out in the woods shouting that this could be the race of my life. That’s when I felt that something big was happening.”

How much double poling training have you done leading up to this?

“It’s mainly the last three to four weeks that I’ve focused more on long-distance training.”

Opening up for a shift

Since his junior years, Malte Jutterdal has had a strong interest in long-distance racing. His long-term plan had been to reach the U23 World Championships, but after missing that opportunity and turning 23 next year, he is now opening the door to fully focusing on long-distance racing.

“Now that I missed my last chance at U23 and have done so well in long-distance races, I’m opening the door to start focusing more on long-distance skiing. We’ll see what happens moving forward.”

Jutterdal will not compete in any more Ski Classics events this season, as he will instead focus on the upcoming Swedish Championships in a few weeks.

Also Read: All you need to know ahead of Birkebeinerrennet Season XVII

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