Last Sunday at the Ruka World Cup, in the 20-kilometer freestyle mass start race, Remi Lindholm was the best Finnish skier and fought in the lead group until the finish, finishing just over six seconds behind the winner.

Remi Lindholm is a colorful figure in Finnish cross-country skiing. A man who is not afraid of training, doesn’t bow to images but loves skiing. Remi embodies the attitude and style of an old-school skier, perhaps with a bit of Mieto and a touch of Myllylä and Mäntyranta. A determined skier who competes even in freezing temperatures without a base layer or long underwear. A future hero dreaming of a career measured not in years but in decades.

Intensive Training

Throughout the year, Remi spends about 1200 hours on roller skiing and running. During the dryland training season, he logs around 30 hours a week, with roughly half dedicated to roller skiing and the other half to running.

“Training this summer was quite similar to last year. I focused a bit more on roller skiing, trying to improve the glide for better technique. I need to get better at double poling. On the treadmill, I’ve skied only diagonal striding uphill,” Remi explains to Maastohiihto.com.

He uses running for both basic endurance and interval training. In the summer, he runs without poles, and in the fall, the running sessions become more pole centric.

“Basic running training as an interval workout could be 5 x 2 km at a steady anaerobic threshold or 3 x 5 km uphill as speed endurance. There’s also quite a bit of steady-state training, usually as basic endurance training. I like it as a long workout. If I’ve done some intensity the day before, then I prefer doing a long recovery run. I usually don’t add any speed sessions to it. It wouldn’t be bad, though, to include some speed sessions,” Remi reflects on his training approach.

No Specific Training Philosophy

Remi mentions that he doesn’t have a specific training philosophy or format. His weeks are quite similar, with long sessions and high-intensity workouts in the same week.

“I’ve found that the more and harder you train, the better you perform in races. I’ve been training more for the past three years, and performance has steadily improved. At some point, I’ll have to come up with something more when I can’t increase the volume much more. I haven’t thought about what to do in the future. You can probably still add more intensity, and it’s possible that dropping the volume a bit could provide the next boost. I feel that at 25, there’s no need to reduce volume and increase intensity just yet, but at some point, maybe.”

The athlete who logs intense training weeks acknowledges that during the summer, he’s often on the edge, both physically and mentally. However, all the training is geared towards ensuring that the skis glide smoothly in winter.

“The competition season is easier for me than the training season when I’m tired all the time. In winter, when you ease off the training a bit and do harder intervals, the fitness goes up. Then you just need to focus on the next weekend and fine-tune. It’s nice to be in winter when you’ve trained in the summer, just trying to achieve results.”

Read More: World Cup Standings after the Ruka Premiere

Seeking Open-mindedness

Reflecting on his own character, Remi thinks for a while but eventually admits to being determined and persistent without wanting to sound too self-praising. He doesn’t give up, even if the devil takes him away.

“In skiing, that trait is good, but it can be a bit challenging in a relationship. We’re doing fine, no problems here. Maybe I should be a bit more open-minded and admit that I’m not always right about what should be done. I should learn to trust others’ perspectives. Santtu (Remi’s coach Santeri Erola) is good at challenging me and can talk me into things when necessary. I like to speak openly during training sessions.”

Life of a Traveler

The skier, who trains intensely, doesn’t have much free time, but during breaks, he spends time browsing TikTok and discussing training in general. Remi isn’t into reading, but he has watched Beck and Wallander movies. The overflowing offerings of streaming services haven’t yet sparked his interest in binge-watching series or movies at home or on the road. Remi also coaches his 14-year-old brother and regrets not always being able to monitor the youngster’s training.

According to Remi, Finland has excellent racetracks and conditions for ski training. Familiar training and race locations also make planning training easier. As for favorite racetracks, he mentions Ruka and Lahti in Finland and Falun and Davos abroad.

“Those places have nice flowing tracks where you can train your technique while skiing. You can just dance on skis, and there are no steep hills. These are easily skiable tracks, not bumpy. Of course, they are quite easy compared to tracks in Central Europe. It’s easier to go to World Cup races when you’ve skied there before. You know the tracks and tactics beforehand.”

Season Goals

Thinking about his goals, Remi admits that he wants to become a regular in the top ten of the World Cup and achieve the same in the overall standings. The upcoming winter’s World Cup races in North America also interest him if he has achieved good results by then. If not, it’s better to stay on the old continent and focus on races on this side of the ocean.

“If all the races go terribly, there might not be a need to go on the American tour. After that, there’s quite quickly the Nordic tour, Lahti, Holmenkollen, and Falun. Those are three good weekends. But if you’re in good positions in the overall standings, it’s worth going across the pond. That’s a concern for another time.”

“Pertsa” is a Stone Age Discipline

Our conversation turns to the future of cross-country skiing, and Remi’s tone tightens a bit. FIS measures don’t get the best grades, and the athlete’s criticism sharply addresses our discussion on the latest changes in skiing. The shortening of men’s distances and the continuous restriction of the classical technique don’t please the skier.

“It’s a bit of a Stone Age thing, those classic races. I’d prefer just double-poling, but it’s not really possible in World Cup races. I do prefer freestyle over classic,” Remi reflects and continues:

“I’m grateful that I got to ski the proper men’s distances in the Olympic year 2022. Now, it’s more focused on sprinting. It’s not the best decision in my opinion. It feels like there’s sometimes no logic in FIS decisions, and they could be made with a longer-term perspective. It feels like the distances change every year, and you don’t know which distance to train for. Now, however, the distances are probably set until the next Olympics.”

Skiing Career into Middle Age

Despite recent decisions by FIS, Remi’s motivation doesn’t wane, and he continues to work as hard as before. He doesn’t have a specific primary event, and long-distance skiing and Ski Classics also interest him. Remi also believes that in major competitions, the 50-kilometer distance can be preserved, but a longer race like 100 kilometers should be introduced.

“I’ve been dreaming a bit about three more Olympics and then, if I still have the drive, ten more years of Ski Classics. I did plan to dedicate my entire life to skiing, but you never know, maybe my leg would go bad. If I went to those three Olympics and then another ten years of Ski Classics, I’d be 46. I do plan to do Ski Classics for those ten years, but I haven’t told my girlfriend about my plans yet,” Remi reflects on his future life path.

Check the World Cup calendar here.