New plan for Kristine Stavås Skistad. In a few days, the sprint star will do something she has never done before.

A lot has changed for Kristine Stavås Skistad since she broke with her coach in June and left her club last week. On Monday, she will do something she has never done before.

Skistad is now in her third season as part of the elite national team. But neither last year nor the year before did she take part in any of the national team’s training camps. This year, too, she had planned the same: to train with her own coach Lage Sofienlund on home turf at Konnerud, all the way up to the season opener in November.

This despite the fact that both national team coach Marit Bjørgen and the federation have a clear and expressed wish for the sprint star to take part in the team’s camps and activities.

Changing all her plans

Now it looks like the Norwegian Ski Federation is getting what it wants.

When the national team travels to a training camp at Mosetertoppen on Monday, October 5, the plan is for Skistad to join. Bjørgen confirms this.

“Now it looks like Kristine will be joining us at Mosetertoppen. That is very pleasing. We have always wanted her to come along to camps,” she tells TV 2.

Within the national team, Bjørgen is the one responsible for the sprint star. She says that Skistad’s participation in the camp has been on the cards for a while.

“This is something that has been somewhat in the plans. It is the first lowland camp after the holidays, so it is natural that she joins us there, and that is very good,” says Bjørgen.

Skistad’s change of course comes as a result of major changes in the sprint star’s life since the national team was presented at the beginning of May.

On June 10, just over a month after the national team selection was announced, Skistad dropped the bombshell that she was ending her collaboration with Lage Sofienlund. The two had worked together ever since she was 14 years old. Since 2021, she has had her own private training setup with the coaching profile, alongside the national team.

Also Read: Skistad breaks with successful coach

Bjørgen: Has been given insight

After the split with Sofienlund, Skistad brought in her former coach from her time at NTG, Per Ola Gasmann, as her coach heading into the World Championship season. This summer, she has mostly trained alone, outside the club environment at Konnerud.

Skistad’s agreement with the federation remains the same as before, and Skistad is still free to train outside the team until the start of the season. But the national team now hopes she will take part in more of the team’s joint program.

“We have made arrangements and want to contribute, and then it is up to her what she wants to use us for. I have talked with Per Ola and have some insight into the training work,” says Bjørgen.

Based on what she has seen, the sprint star has trained well since mid June, and Bjørgen is optimistic both for the season and the World Championships.

“She has put in good work, and the feedback is that it has been positive. I know that she is very hungry ahead of the World Championships in Falun. There is a sprint there on a course she has really enjoyed,” says Bjørgen.

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The Skistad case: This is what has happened

After Kristine Stavås Skistad broke with coach Lage Sofienlund, she also filed a formal complaint against her former coach with both the club and the Norwegian Ski Federation. She believes she has been subjected to abuse of power, and is also said to have demanded that the club remove Sofienlund and key people in the club.

On September 21, it became clear that Skistad has also broken with the club she had represented since she was a child. She now represents the neighboring club Mjøndalen IF Ski. A few days later, Sofienlund chose to step down from his coaching position at Konnerud.

Welcomed with open arms: “She will get peace to work”

In Mjøndalen, the sprint star is welcomed with open arms.

“Kristine came to us and asked about the possibility of becoming a member. She is in a difficult situation, and we want to help her focus on what she is first and foremost there to do: ski fast,” says Morten Gregertsen, chairman of the board of Mjøndalen IF Ski.

Mjøndalen IF Ski emphasizes that the club is not a party to the ongoing whistleblowing case in Konnerud IL Ski, does not know the substance of the case, and does not take a position in the conflict.

“This is not about taking sides. Konnerud and Mjøndalen are neighboring clubs with a good relationship. For us, this is about supporting an athlete who has come to us in a difficult situation, and giving her a sporting home and peace to work,” says Gregertsen.