Emma Ribom had aimed for years to compete in the classic sprint at the Olympics in Milano-Cortina. However, her dream was shattered when she was cut from the tough competition.

Emma Ribom had aimed for years to compete in the classic sprint at the Olympics in Milano-Cortina. However, her dream was shattered when she was cut from the tough competition. After spending much of the summer in the USA, she has found her motivation again. “I enjoy being in my own bubble,” says the Swedish ski star.

It’s mid-October, and the national ski team is holding a kickoff meeting in Stockholm. Most of the national team athletes are present, and interviews are flowing. Langd.se gets a few minutes with Emma Ribom. The major disappointment from being cut from the Olympic sprint last season is now behind her.

“It has been really good for me to spend a lot of time in the USA. I enjoy being in my own bubble,” she says.

Thought about quitting

During the toughest times, she considered quitting. She saw no point in continuing her elite pursuit, she recently shared in an interview with Expressen.

Now, however, she is filled with a desire for redemption after spending two extended training periods in the USA during the spring and summer. One reason for her time across the Atlantic is her boyfriend, American national team skier JC Schoonmaker.

Turning training into an adventure

“It’s fun to hang out with him, but the nature is also amazing with the majestic mountains and all the new places to discover. We’ve turned training into an adventure, and I think the disappointment from last season faded quickly when I was in the USA, and I started to feel that desire for redemption again.”

Emma Ribom states that she is entering the new season with great motivation.

“I feel very motivated. Things have gone well all summer, and now it feels really fun.”

How is your form right now?

“My training form is very good. Competition form is, of course, something else, and that will need to be honed as the season progresses, but I have nothing to complain about.”

“I know what I can do”

Given that last season didn’t go your way, do you feel any pressure from yourself or others to have a better season this year?

“The pressure comes a lot from ourselves. There are many of us in the team who have been around for a long time, and we know what we can achieve when everything works. I know what I can do, but then it’s about delivering that in the competition.”

How much do you support and encourage each other within the team?

“Of course, we do. We are with each other more or less constantly throughout the winter, so we definitely try to do that.

There’s a home World Championship coming up this winter. How do you think that will be?

“It’s really exciting to have a home World Championship. Not everyone gets the chance to experience that, and it feels significant to have something to look forward to now,” says Emma Ribom, continuing.

“I remember the World Championship in 2015. I was attending ski high school in Gällivare, and we went to watch the competitions. The whole experience was really amazing.”

“Entering the World Championship with a good feeling”

You have an individual World Championship medal from before, a silver from the World Championship sprint in Planica 2023. What do you need to achieve to be satisfied with your home World Championship in Falun?

“I want to enter the World Championship feeling that I have done everything I can and that I am in that top form you want to be in heading into a championship, feeling that I couldn’t have done anything differently. It’s a pretty amazing feeling to have, and that’s the feeling I really want – that I have given myself the conditions to succeed and that the performance during the World Championship will determine how it goes.”

Sprint is the main goal

Which race are you aiming for the most?

“Historically, it’s the sprint. That’s where I have had my biggest successes so far in my career, and I have tailored much of my training this summer towards that. But I also enjoy racing distance events, and I consider myself quite all-round. I don’t want to rule out any competition right now; we’ll see how the season goes.”

Will you participate in the Tour de Ski?

“I’m quite flexible about that. It depends a bit on the start of the season and what I feel I need to build my form towards Falun.”

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