The 10-kilometer classic technique race at the World Championships in Trondheim will be Calle Halfvarsson’s main focus for the upcoming season: “In this stage of my career, it’s better to focus on one or two specific races,” says Halfvarsson.

Calle Halfvarsson is one of the most experienced skiers in traditional cross-country skiing. The Swedish star made his first World Cup start in 2009 at the Royal Palace Sprint in Stockholm (this was the year after he won gold in the sprint at his first Junior World Championships).

The 35-year-old from Sågmyra has made a total of 253 World Cup starts. He’s been on the podium 28 times and has been the fastest of all five times (three times individually).

He is now preparing for the upcoming winter season, with the World Championships in Trondheim, Norway, as the main goal. More specifically, the race that will be held on March 4, 2025, at the Granåsen Ski Stadium, the 10-kilometer classic style race.

“10 kilometers in classic style is the distance I performed best on last winter, and it’s a distance that suits me well when I’m in form. It will be the main goal at the World Championships, even though I hope to compete in more distances when I’m there. But first, I have to qualify for the World Championships team,” says Halfvarsson to Langd.se.

The fact is that the 10-kilometer race in the World Cup last winter in Trondheim was his best individual performance of the season. He finished fourth in that race, just under two seconds from the podium, and he was the only non-Norwegian skier among the top seven.

Does it suit you better to focus on a specific distance?

“I’m at a point in my career where I can’t focus on everything anymore. I think it’s better for me to focus on one or two races where I go all-in.”

How do you change your training to be at your best in the 10-kilometer classic style?

“Long training sessions have always been key for me to perform well, and that will still be the case now. But I’ve also added more running intervals, mainly uphill. This is to build explosiveness and strength in my legs. 10 kilometers is all about building toughness so you can maintain a high speed for a long time. That’s what I’m working on right now,” says Halfvarsson.

At the moment, he is racing at Toppidrettsveka (he finished 10^th at the 56km long-distance race on Wednesday) and will also compete in at least two races during the Alliansloppet weekend:

“Even though it’s a boring answer, I won’t read too much into the results, whether they go well or poorly. No matter what happens, the key is to keep working towards the winter season,” says Halfvarsson.

Also Read: Joly wins long-distance race at Toppidrettsveka 2024

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