Criticizes the national team leadership, claims the criteria are being twisted and that Emil Iversen is being used as a pawn in a “dirty game.”

During the Norwegian Championships (NM) in Steinkjer last week, Emil Iversen’s father, Ole Morten Iversen, confronted the national team leadership over what he believed was a calculated game involving Emil Iversen.

“When he wasn’t selected after the Tour de Ski, then it’s not intended that he should go to the Olympics, I’m fairly certain of that,” Ole Morten Iversen tells NRK.

The 34-year-old, who has been dropped from the Norwegian national team, has delivered a remarkable comeback and a very strong Olympic application. He meets all formal criteria and more: three podium finishes in relevant World Cup events and a proven status as one of the world’s best distance skiers.

Yet Emil Iversen has still not been selected for the Olympics.

At present, six men are already included in the Olympic squad, all medal contenders in distance events: Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Harald Østberg Amundsen, Martin Løwstrøm Nyenget, Erik Valnes, and Einar Hedegart were selected before Christmas. Mattis Stenshagen was then selected after the Tour de Ski, which was initially supposed to be the final selection.

That leaves two remaining spots. One is intended for a sprinter, but Ole Morten Iversen is convinced that the other will not go to Emil Iversen.

Also Read: Two new Norwegian cross-country skiers confirmed for the Winter Olympics 2026

Accuses the national team of playing games

Iversen is deeply disturbed by what he calls a game being played by the national team leadership, and he is clear that the situation is highly demanding for Emil Iversen.

“I think it’s sad how Emil is doing down in Lavazè. Training is going well, but how much he thinks about this day and night, and how draining it is. It would have been more ‘fair’ if he had been told after the Tour de Ski, ‘sorry, you’re not going.’ I think he also feels this is a game he is destined to lose,” he says.

National team coach Eirik Myhr Nossum says he does not understand the criticism.

“Then I don’t understand what he means. There is no game from our side, at least not. We will put everything together tonight and select a team on Tuesday,” Nossum says after Saturday’s skiathlon at the Norwegian Championships in Steinkjer.

Iversen, who himself was a coach for the women’s national team during the 2022 Olympics, elaborates further. He believes the national team leadership has had a plan since autumn regarding who they expect to qualify and which events they should race, and that they are now delaying the process to give established national team skiers more opportunities to work their way into the Olympic squad.

“Now that puzzle is starting to fall apart a bit early in the season, so we reshuffle the cards. Then the criteria they themselves have set are adjusted somewhat,” Iversen says.

Nossum rejects claims of favoritism and insists all athletes are evaluated equally.

“Punished for being Emil Iversen”

Ole Morten Iversen also fears his son is being punished for who he is.

“Unlike some others, he may not have been entirely loyal. He has made some statements in the past that people might be getting tired of. I didn’t believe that before now. Now I’m actually starting to wonder if that’s part of it,” he says.

Nossum dismisses that claim as well.

“No, no, no. Emil is a colorful figure in Norwegian cross-country skiing, and now he’s also a pretty good skier again. And that’s positive,” the national team coach tells NRK.

Experts rule out Iversen

When the Olympic selection after the Tour de Ski was announced, many reacted to Emil Iversen being left out. After the NM week in Steinkjer, however, several experts believe there is simply no room for him on the Olympic squad.

They highlight several other athletes they believe are stronger, both inside and outside the national team.

Among them are Andreas Fjorden Ree (25) and first-year senior Lars Heggen, both of whom impressed at the Norwegian Championships. The 20-year-old from Team Aker Dæhlie won NM gold in the sprint on Wednesday and claimed his first World Cup victory on Saturday, also in the sprint. Fjorden Ree took two silver medals and delivered a strong relay leg.

“When it’s this close between candidates, I think it’s important to send someone who is at that stage of career development like (Lars) Heggen. And you have to look at the composition of the entire squad, and I don’t think Iversen has one of the four spots in any event right now. Then it’s wrong to send a skier only as a reserve,” says NRK expert Fredrik Aukland.

His colleague Pål Golberg agrees. Former world champion Hans Christer Holund has also concluded that Iversen will be left out.

Also Read: Holund: “I feel for Emil”

The Norwegian Championships could decide

According to the Norwegian Ski Association’s season regulations, the Norwegian Championships are not in themselves a basis for Olympic selection. However, the rules allow the championships to be decisive in cases of doubt.

Emil Iversen chose to skip the Norwegian Championships. Instead, he traveled to altitude to prepare for the Olympics together with Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, as if he had already received the green light.

That could prove decisive.

Einar Hedegart, the athlete unbeaten this season in the Olympic 10km freestyle event, competed at the Norwegian Championships. He raced one event: the 10km freestyle. He won it again.

In second place, just seconds behind, was Andreas Fjorden Ree again. He has been the closest challenger to Hedegart in the event this winter and has beaten Iversen. Ree also followed up with another second place in the NM skiathlon on Saturday and delivered a powerful 10km leg in the NM relay.

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