“I’m really surprised. I just had Covid.” Heidi Weng surprised not only herself, but most of the spectators at Rådhusplassen in Oslo when she ran a top time and took Norwegian Championships silver in the 10km road race. “I didn’t even think I would make it to the start.”

Heidi Weng is perhaps the cross-country skier on the Norwegian national team who has had the biggest fear of Covid. But this time she wasn’t spared.

“No, I got Covid right after the last training camp. That’s why it was very uncertain if I would start here,” she said to Langrenn.com.

In BUL’s yellow kit, she hung on with the lead group from the start of “10 for Grete” – the Oslo Marathon’s 10km race, which this year also counted as the Norwegian Championship at the distance.

She left several national team runners behind, and only Kristine Lande Dommersnes from Haugesund was ahead. Heidi stayed on her back, but after just over half the course, she had to let a few meters slip.

“It felt a bit heavy there around 6–7 kilometers. But if I hadn’t had Covid, I think I could have beaten her.”

Toward the finish, the cross-country star didn’t lose any more ground, and at the finish line, Heidi Weng was only 16 seconds away from the gold medal.

The time? A powerful 32:35 minutes in the rainy streets of Oslo.

“I’m very happy with the time,” she said.

Dommersnes won in 32:19, while national team athlete Amalie Sæten from Vidar took bronze with 32:47 in this fast race.

The story continues below.

Iver also with a great race

And the cross-country skiers impressed in several classes at the Oslo Marathon. National team’s Iver Tildheim Andersen ran to 2nd place in the half-marathon with a very strong 1:08:47 in the challenging course.

He was two and a half minutes behind Senay Fissehatsion, who won in 1:06:18. But the national team athlete has a personal best in the half-marathon of under 61 minutes.

“I’m very happy with the time,” said Tildheim Andersen, who ran almost the entire race alone.

“It was my debut,” he said about his first road race.

In 23rd place, we found Karstein Johaug with 1:16:31.

“Ugh, that was tough. But I’m impressed with Iver’s time,” said the athlete.

Results can be found HERE.

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