Ski-Willy Marathon Team Austria strengthens its Pro Team squad for Ski Classics Season XVI. The Finnish athlete is joining the Austrian Pro Team from Team Kaski-Ekovilla.

Ski-Willy Marathon Team Austria was established in 2015 and is based in the heart of the Austrian Alps. They just completed another season in Ski Classics and finished in 32nd place overall in the Pro Team competition. 

Now, in a move to reinforce their squad, Finnish Pro Team athlete Veli-Matti Räsänen will join the ranks of the Austrian Pro Team.

Back to the roots

After the surprise withdrawal from Team Kaski-Ekovilla, the top Finnish Pro Team athlete Veli-Matti Räsänen will again compete for the Ski-Willy Marathon Team Austria next winter.

Vellu, as his friends call him, was already part of the Austrian Pro Team in the 2019/2020 season. In his first Ski Classics season, the young Finn scored two top-50 results and narrowly missed out on Dolomitenlauf’s victory.

In the following season, he joined the Estonian Pro Team Nordic Jobs Worldwide, and in the last two years, he was successful in Team Kaski-Ekovilla, where he won the Finlandia Ski Marathon twice.

Also Read: Team Kaski-Ekovilla calling it quits

Veli-Matti Räsänen’ss most significant achievements so far are 36th place at the Tartu Marathon in 2022, 37th place in the Bad Gastein Criterium in 2024, and 38th place at Marcialonga and Engadin La Diagonela in 2022.

The goal for the upcoming season is a further improvement in the Pro Tour ranking, podiums at the Dolomitenlauf, and the most important Finnish ski marathons.

Ski-Willy Marathon Team Director Peter Kiene is delighted about the signing of the strong Finn skier:

“After the retirement of our best male athlete, Josua Struebel, we were looking for a suitable replacement. The return of Vellu to our team currently exceeds all expectations. He is an enormously strong skier, reliable, and honest. In addition, he was part of the legendary Ski-Willy Marathon Team’ AustroFinns’ in our most successful Ski Classics season 2019/2020,” says Kiene and adds:

“Together with Terhi Pollari and Mikko Harju, he caused a sensation in the Alps with Ski Classics top placings and success in the Dolomitenlauf. We may be at the beginning of a new AustroFinn era. As has been shown in the past, this connection not only harmonizes perfectly but was more than successful and enabled friendships for life. In addition, we will take a big step forward as a team in the sporting field again and revise our goals significantly upwards.”

Read More – Ski-Willy Marathon Team Austria: Season XV highlights and future goals

More information about Ski Classics you can find at skiclassics.com.

Are you interested in Ski Classics and long-distance skiing? Click HERE and read more about it.