With two previous sprint victories in Ruka under her belt, the Swedish star Emma Ribom is gearing up for another competition. Ribom shared her thoughts with ProXCskiing.com’s sister site Langd.se about her preparation for the World Championships, memories from the Tour de Ski, and the culture within the Swedish women’s team.

Many Swedish national team skiers have already established A- and B-plans for their season. This year, with Therese Johaug back and all eyes on Trondheim, such planning might be even more crucial. Unfortunately for fans, many athletes’ A-plans do not include the Tour de Ski. When ProXCskiing.com’s sister site Langd.se asked Ribom about the Tour and her preparations for Trondheim, she revealed that she not only has A- and B-plans but perhaps even a C-plan:

“I’m very humble about the fact that things can change. But based on experience, I enjoy having a training period over Christmas and New Year.”

In last year’s Tour de Ski, Ribom finished 16th at the top of Alpe Cermis. Despite this, she’s not satisfied with her performance:

“I don’t have good memories from the Tour de Ski last year. So, most likely, I won’t participate, but everything depends on how things go. Plan B and Plan C might include the Tour de Ski,” the traditional cross-country skier revealed.

Like several other Swedish national team members, Ribom isn’t drawn to the Tour de Ski as part of her World Championships preparation. This contrasts with many Norwegian skiers, who use the Tour and other World Cup races to qualify for the World Championships. Ribom hasn’t yet decided on participating in the Swedish Ski Games in Falun, scheduled two weeks before the World Championships:

“That’s something to think about. I do really well at altitude, and that has worked as preparation for major championships.”

“It’s something I want to prioritize because the World Championships in Trondheim is my main goal. It’s about daring to prioritize,” says Ribom, who turned 27 on Friday, November 29.

“Celebrating Success is Important”

Competition within the Swedish women’s team is fierce, especially in sprint events. Moa Lundgren, who was outside the national team before this season, didn’t make it to the World Cup in Ruka. National team manager Anders Byström explained the reasoning in a text message to Langd.se:

“Frida will compete in the sprint, which means there’s no room. We ‘only’ have six spots. It’s hard to remove Maja, Linn, Jonna, Emma, or Johanna,” writes Byström.

Also Read – Ruka World Cup: Start lists and start times for the classic sprint

Elite sports can be intense, but Ribom insists that there’s a positive and sustainable culture within the team:

“I think there’s a drive in the group. We constantly want to improve and inspire each other, and we are a curious team. Even though we achieve great results, we aren’t satisfied and want to take the sport to the next level. That’s cool,” Ribom says with a smile.

Celebrating successes is important, and Swedish fans have been spoiled with them, particularly in sprint events. In the team’s old waxing trailer, champagne corks were popped after every World Cup win:

“I also think we have very high standards for ourselves, but we’ve also talked about the importance of celebrating. And it’s important to celebrate success,” Ribom concludes.

Also Read: Karlsson claims Ruka Premiere – No mercy for Johaug

Room for a Hat Trick?

Today, Saturday, it’s time for the classic-style sprint, a format that seems to suit Emma Ribom. She’s won two consecutive sprints in Ruka. In previous years, the competitions, just like this year, were in classic style. Additionally, Ribom has never finished worse than fourth in the prologue.

Peter Larsson earned the nickname “King of Düsseldorf” after six victories at the same venue. Who knows? Maybe the “Duchess of Ruka” will stand on top of the podium today.