Last Saturday, Astrid Øyre Slind took bronze in the 15km skiathlon race at the World Championships in Planica. Next Saturday, she will start the 30km race, the last women’s event in the 2023 Worlds. And at 8:00 CET the next day, the 35-year-old athlete from Team Aker Dæhlie is scheduled to start at Vasaloppet. 

Now Kjell Inge Røkke is making his private plane available so that Øyre Slind can use it. The prestigious long-distance race in Sweden starts less than 20 hours after the 30km race in Planica. 

From Planica to Sälen, it is just over 1.750km in a straight line. The route by car is 2.150 kilometers long and estimated at 25 hours without stops. The flight from Munich to Stockholm takes two hours and 15 minutes, not including check-in and waiting time. In addition, it is four hours by car from Planica plus five and a half hours by car from Stockholm to Sälen.

Then Astrid Øyre Slind’s team’s main sponsors will support the flight in a private plane for the World Championships medalist and Pro Tour star. The information is confirmed by Team Aker Dæhlie’s General Manager Knut Nystad to Adressa. 

She Must Get A Few Hours Of Sleep

Øyre Slind is most concerned about getting at least four hours of continuous sleep before she starts in Sälen at 8:00 on Sunday morning, March 5. 

Before the World Championships, Øyre Slind had to miss Marcialonga in favor of the World Cup in Les Rousses. There, she took her first podium in the World Cup but potentially missed out on the prize money for victory in the Italian Ski Classics race. 

Øyre Slind emphasizes that it is not money that makes her skiing. But last year, she won Vasaloppet, and that experience is tempting to repeat.

Not Afraid Of Two Races In A Row

Regarding performance, Øyre Slind believes it can work well to race the 30km in the World Championships in one day and then go to Vasaloppet the next. In any case, it will not be the first time she races back-to-back long-distance races. 

“I’m excited about how the body will feel in Vasaloppet after the 30km at the World Championships, but I’m optimistic. Long-distance skiing is a bit like that where you can get into the race a little later,” she tells to Langrenn.com, and continues: 

“If things don’t go so well, it’s not a crisis. But if I don’t try, I’ll regret it. In any case, I want to experience it. And I’m pretty sure no one has done it before.”

On Sunday, March 5, it’s time for Vasaloppet. The event marks the 11th Ski Classics stage and the third Grand Classics Season XIV.

The Season XIV of Ski Classics Pro Tour consists of 14 events on 10 event weekends in 6 different countries. 

Ski Classics Pro Tour Season XIV (2022/2023)

• Event 1: December 10, 2022 – Bad Gastein PTT, Bad Gastein, Austria, 15km
• Event 2: December 11, 2022 – Bad Gastein Criterium, Bad Gastein, Austria, 35km
• Event 3: December 17, 2022 – La Venosta Criterium, Val Venosta, Italy, 36km 
• Event 4: January 14, 2023 – Pustertaler Ski Marathon, Sexten, Italy, 62km
• Event 5: January 15, 2023 – Prato Piazza Mountain Challenge, Niederdorf, Italy, 32km
• Event 6: January 21, 2023 – Engadin La Diagonela, Engadin Valley, Switzerland, 48km 
• Event 7: January 29, 2023 – Marcialonga, Trentino, Italy, 70km
• Event 8: February 12, 2023 – Jizerská50, Bedřichov, Czech Republic, 50km
• Event 9: February 18, 2023 – Grönklitt Criterium, Orsa Grönklitt, Sweden, 50km
• Event 10: February 19, 2023 – Grönklitt ITT, Orsa Grönklitt, Sweden, 12km
• Event 11: March 5, 2023 – Vasaloppet, Sälen-Mora, Sweden, 90km
• Event 12: March 18, 2023 – Birkebeinerrennet, Rena-Lillehammer, Norway, 54km
• Event 13: April 1, 2023 – Reistadløpet, Setermoen-Bardufoss, Norway, 40km
• Event 14: April 2, 2023 – Summit 2 Senja, Bardufoss- Finnsnes, Norway, 67km

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

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