The traditional cross-country skiers have not, without reason, been called championship specialist. The first of many medals were secured during the team sprint at the World Championships in Holmenkollen in 2011. She followed up with individual bronze during the World Championships sprint in Val di Fiemme in 2013, while the first gold came in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

Since then, she has placed ten more medals in her collection, including individual silver in the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics and the 2019 Seefeld World Championships.

Hectic time after the announcement of the end of her career

“The time after the ski season has been very nice and a little more hectic than I thought it would be. I have worked as a coach at Wang Toppidrett Hamar, moved into a new house, and run some other small projects,” says Maiken Caspersen Falla.

The story of the sprint star Falla starts back on a December day in 2008. In Düsseldorf, she took her first podium place in the World Cup and secured her definitive breakthrough.

“It was enough when I realized that ‘here I can achieve something.’ Since then, I have not looked back so much. Not so much going forward, either. I have taken one season at a time. I have had fun and enjoyed myself. The journey I have had has meant as much as the results,” says Falla.

From there, almost 14 years ago, numerous podium places were achieved with 22 individual wins. Her first World Championships at the senior level was in Liberec 2009.

“Right there, at the World Championships in Liberec, I think it was huge and a little scary to race with the seniors without any special World Championships. In retrospect, I see it as very good learning and an important factor that I have succeeded in many championships later in my career.”

Indeed, there have been many downturns over the years

After this, there have been several ups and downs and some difficult times with adversity and illness.

“It is difficult to choose exactly what has been the biggest up and the biggest down. Perhaps one of the biggest downs was when my body did not work well for the third autumn in a row in 2020. Then things worked very poorly, and I was tired and missed training for a long period. We never quite figured out why things turned out the way they did, making it extra difficult to turn around.”

“The up was thus huge just before Christmas, and I took NM gold in Granåsen and WC silver in Oberstdorf a month later,” says Maiken.

“Why exactly I have succeeded as well as I have done is probably very complex and for several reasons. Since I was younger, I have controlled my training and learned to know my body well. I have been curious and always had a great motivation to develop. I have managed to develop my talent in strength and speed to become a top skier who could decide competitions to my advantage.”

“When developing my weaknesses, such as endurance, I have been patient and never tried to take a huge step in a short time. I have managed to develop my strengths, while I have slowly but surely developed my weaknesses. It has always been important for me to do the best I can every day, and I have worked in a structured way with training planning and development goals, both with coaches and myself.”

“It has played a big role that I have been part of a strong team where as a youngster I learned a lot from the older people on the team and let myself be motivated by them. I have also had many good people around me who have helped me, and I feel I have managed to take the best for myself from everyone without compromising on my philosophy and development plan,” says Falla.

In developing new talents, Maiken Caspersen Falla has several thoughts and a lot of personal experience to share.

Independence and knowing oneself well

“It is important that everyone has the opportunity to find their way. Everyone is different, with different strengths and weaknesses. Coaches for young athletes must help the athlete to become independent in the training work and training planning.”

“A good coach manages to help the athletes to become independent and at the same time teach a good basic training philosophy. A good coach must also gather the team in a common philosophy and get the athletes to train together in gatherings and group sessions.”

“In developing new talents, it is important to have a long-term plan, where the aim is to develop good senior skiers. Younger athletes should not do the same as elite skiers and must be more concerned with the big picture and take it step by step. It is easy to become too focused on details and specialized at an early age. I am very much for versatility and believe it is fundamental to success at the senior level.”

After ending her career, Maiken realized that she is very fond of exercising and using her body. Cross-country skiing can be tempting, and we should not ignore the fact that the skier will compete in several races in the future. Relays in the Norwegian championship for the club she represents, Strandbygda, will also be something she wants to participate in.

“I am very fond of skiing, and it would have been very fun to go cross-country skiing. Most likely, the goal will be to complete with as good a form as I can and not to fight at the top necessarily.”

Norwegian championship relays and possible long-distance skiing

“I have trained purposefully and large amounts for many years, so now there are other things in life that are more important to me than training and winning cross-country skiing. Even if I do not bet on the World Championships and World Cup, I must notify if I am to participate in larger competitions. I have been a compulsory athlete since I was 18 years old and think it is so intrusive in everyday life that I unfortunately do not know if it is worth it anymore to possibly to start a couple of ski races this season, even though it would have been a lot of fun.”

“Now, I mostly train one session a day. There will be mostly running, but also some cycling, rollerskiing, and strength. I love to exercise and do it because I think it’s fun and it gives me good energy. I hope to have an OK form for the NM relays with Strandbygda, and it would also have been fun to have some running competitions this summer.”