By Theresa Fugger

The Alps events of Visma Ski Classics Season XI are history, and the Pro Tour continues in the Northern part of Europe. 
German-speaking Pro Teams usually perform well during the first part of the season, but this year’s difficulties resulting from the pandemic created problems for them to travel. Now they want to strike at Vasaloppet. 

Many of Visma Ski Classics Pro Tour’s southern events are easily accessible for Pro Teams from Germany, Switzerland, and Austria in a typical year. Therefore, the five German-speaking Pro Teams in Visma Ski Classics participated predominantly in the Visma Alp Trophy events. However, this year, an unusually low amount of these athletes has participated in the events.
“We have difficulties setting together service teams and getting athletes to the events,” says Michael Kuisle, Visma Ski Classics Pro Team athlete of endless local Nordic Team. 
“Most athletes and service staff have full-time jobs which they depend on, and their workplaces prohibit them from leaving their home country.”

Still, endless local Nordic Team will send five male athletes to Vasaloppet (Robin Frost, Florian Göbel, Florian Rohde, Christian Winker, and Patrick Ottilinger). Preparations are complicated as rain, and warm weather make the snow melting. When asked if they will be able to achieve a new best rank of a German skier at Vasaloppet since the event joined Visma Ski Classics (Thomas Freimuth, 17th rank), Kuisle answers: 
“So much has to fit together on the day of Vasaloppet. Skis, feeding, performance of the body, and a little luck with the weather. We would benefit most from snowfall, which creates large groups where we can stay for a long time. In any case, our goal is to provide the best German starter.”

xc-ski.de AIN Skimarathon Team’s top athlete, Thomas Freimuth, the current holder of a German athlete’s best rank in Vasaloppet since it’s part of Visma Ski Classics, is motivated to tackle his record from 2012. 
“For Thomas, Vasaloppet is THE event which he has in the back of his mind at each training session throughout the year,” says Sabine Freimuth, xc-ski.de AIN Skimarathon Pro Team Director. 
Thomas Freimuth and Tobias Dargatz will race for the German Visma Ski Classics Pro Team xc-ski.de AIN Skimarathon Team and do their best to stay with the top skiers as long as possible.

Team Zipps, one of the new German Pro Teams in Visma Ski Classics Season XI, will start with almost the whole team at Vasaloppet (Tobias Hartig, Andreas Tannert, Benjamin Selter, Peter Riedl, Hannah Noehmeier, Felix Schwarzmaier and Melina Schöttes). Only Michael Eklöf has to skip Vasaloppet as he still recovers from severe frostbites received at La Diagonela.
“Overall, our preparations are going very well,” says Tobias Hartig. The Pro Team was able to do some test runs and prepare partly on snow and partly on roller skis. “We are in very good spirits and look forward to the highlight of the season,” adds Hartig.

Visma Ski Classics Pro Team BSV IBEX will send two female (Selina Pfäffli and Carine Heuberger) and three male skiers (Nico Walther, Lauro Brändli and Andri Schlittler). 
“Ilya Chernousov will try to qualify for the World Cup in Engadin and skip Vasaloppet this year,” says Markus Walser, Pro Team Director Team BSV IBEX. 
Contrary to the German Pro Teams, the Swiss team still has perfect conditions to train and prepare for Vasaloppet and the remaining Season XI. 

The only Austrian Visma Ski Classics Pro Team, Skimarathon Team Austria, has decided not to participate at Vasaloppet this year, but to present a strong team at the last event of season XI, Ylläs-Levi. 

Top photo: Studio27burger.