Therese Johaug is serious about her argument after a dominant victory in Saturday’s 30-km individual start race in freestyle technique at the Norwegian Championships in Lillehammer.

Therese Johaug won the 30km race by almost three minutes to American Sophia Laukli in second place. The second-best Norwegian was a Ski Classics Pro Team athlete who had trained four or five times in skating this winter. 

Also Read: Dominant win for Johaug at the Norwegian Championships

In fifth place, Heidi Weng was the best Norwegian national team skier, three and a half minutes behind Johaug. Helene Fossesholm, who made her season debut with a bib number at the Norwegian Championships part 1 a month ago, was the second-best of the elite national team women. She finished ninth, almost four and a half minutes behind.  

Johaug, who did her first elite-level ski race in two years and just ten months after giving birth, is relentless: 

“If we had raced five or ten kilometers, I doubt I would have been where I was before. But we’re all very clear that the women’s team needs to take steps towards next season,” the 35-year-old told Langrenn.com after her victory in the Norwegian Championships. 

National team coach, Stig Rune Kveen, defends the athletes, pointing out that the national team skiers have just completed an entire World Cup season, while Johaug made her skiing debut earlier in March. 

“They’re getting physically and mentally tired after a long season, so they should get a well-deserved break now and a quiet April, and then we’ll come back stronger next year,” Kveen tells Langrenn.com.  

But at the same time, the argument that the national team athletes have just finished a long World Cup season also applies to the biathletes who participated in the 30km race. Ida Lien finished sixth in a distance twice as long as what she normally races without stopping at the shooting range. The biathlete was just seconds behind Weng, whose main strength is long, brutal races. 

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Must decide by the Summer

From her side, Therese Johaug is satisfied with the 30km race but self-criticizes her technique and knows what she needs to address to make a comeback for the 2025 World Championships. 

“I got into a decent rhythm after a while, but there were a lot of arms and feet out there at the start,” she said after the finish.  

After the 30km in Lillehammer, Johaug has gained another sign in favor of the World Championships in Norway. 

“I got to feel that competitive rush again. I’ve missed it in my life.”