Teemu Pasanen, the head coach of the Finnish cross-country ski team, says that the high-altitude camp that ended last week went well. Pasanen follows the development of young male skiers with particular interest.

Last year, the National Team of Finland explored new territories, and they found a perfect location for summer training. The place in question is the Italian village of Passo Lavaze, located 1800 meters above sea level. The team headed there this summer as well, and everyone seemed to be very satisfied with the training conditions at the camp.  

– It went well and the place was excellent. The weather was also favorable. A little bit of rain and thunder at night, but that’s it, Teemu Pasanen told maastohiihto.com. 

Seven female and 11 male skiers enjoyed the perks of the Italian village. The women trained according to their own training program. The men, in turn, were divided into sprint and distance groups. 

– About 60-70% of our workouts were the same for both male groups. With the exception of one session, the intensive workouts were differentiated. For example, one race-like exercise was carried out in such a way that the distance skiers did a 55-minute skiathlon workout and the sprinters did a sprint race-like exercise. 

Three weeks at high altitude in top conditions, in a motivated and competitive company, can easily become too much for some athletes. However, Pasanen assures that everything went well in that regard, too. 

– Of course, at a three-week camp, the strain may accumulate, and it is necessary to react to it. However, everyone was able to do all the power exercises well, says Pasanen. 

The athletes’ load was checked with night heart rate monitoring. In addition, their weight was monitored to ensure adequate fluid balance. Lactate levels were checked in some low intensity exercises, but especially during intensive exercises.  

At this point, do you have any data or a feel for how athletes have progressed and developed over the summer? 

– After two years of high level competitions, the more experienced athletes had a longer transition period after the season, and they are at a good basic level at this stage. The situation of our young men in particular is good. The level has risen. They are able to train with more experienced National Team athletes. Hopefully, this will also be reflected in the results in the winter, Pasanen replies. 

Two years of the corona pandemic and the simultaneous total focus on the Olympics have certainly stressed the athletes in the National Team. The situation has now changed a bit. 

– We are still being careful about the pandemic, and masks are worn especially when traveling. The rest of the world has somewhat neglected all corona protocols, and maybe we too can take it a little easier and without stress. 

At the Italian camp, everyone stayed healthy. The only setback was Johanna Matintalo’s fall while roller-skiing. She returned home a few days before anyone else, but she managed to avoid any serious injuries.  

The next training camp is scheduled to take place in Vuokatti, Finland, in mid-September. The program will include at least the Finnish Championships in roller-skiing, the Vuokatinvaara test run and skiing in the snow tunnel.