The Swedish waxing manager for the cross-country national team, Petter Myhlback, feels delighted with what his waxing team has achieved this winter. The work is already starting for the upcoming World Cup winter, which will be completely fluoride-free.

“I think there is only one way to look at it: that it will be a challenge,” says Myhlback to Längd.se.

For those who sit on the TV couch and watch the World Cup and the Olympics, there are probably some who say that Sweden has not succeeded with waxing, as well as waxing manager Myhlback summed up last season.

“I think we had an extremely high level. We do not have a real bottom line, but we have quite a few hits. The cut is really good,” says Myhlback when Langd.se talked to him in Bruksvallarna in connection with the Swedish Championships last Thursday.

“It has been a good season with stability in the team, everyone has enjoyed, and there has been no hassle. I feel pleased,” Myhlback continues.

If we look ahead, now comes the new directive, and it will be a completely fluor-free season. What do you think about that?

“I think there is only one way to look at it: that it will be a challenge. Because you stand and think that the skis will go slower, that some will cheat and that you cannot trust anything. Then it’s not fun to work. We do this professionally. That we in the Swedish waxing team see it as a great challenge and an opportunity to get really good at it.”

This has been going on for a few years. Where would you say you are in this process?

“I think a lot will happen with new products during the late summer and autumn. All wax manufacturers have been focusing on this for a long time.”

“I do not think the best fluor-free products we have now are the ones we will compete in this winter. I think it will be far behind, actually. I would also say that the Olympics strengthened us in the fluorine-free. There were often fluor-free products in the waxing choices.”

What does the work look like in the near future?

“We will be here in Bruksvallarna next week, and then all ski manufacturers from Europe will come here and show us some news, and we will tell them how we want the skis to be constructed. In parallel, the company that has this fluoride test machine comes here. We will make parallel measurements with a test camp in Sjusjøen in Norway. This will be important,” Myhlback concludes.