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In the traditional Eurosport event, curated by Dario Puppo and Massimiliano Ambesi, the lights were mainly focused on the weekend episode: the disqualification of Johannes Klaebo in the 50 km world championship. Former cross-country skier Silvano Valbusa also had his say.
Tuesday 9 March 2021 7 minutes reading time
An episode full of ideas and very hot topics: at Poligono 360 we talked about the Nordic Ski World Championships in Oberstdorf just concluded. Dario Puppo and Massimiliano Ambesi faced several together with Silvano Valbusa (Eurosport commentator as well as Olympic gold medal in the Turin 2006 men's relay).
The Klaebo-Bolshunov case opened the dances, with the couple Puppo & Ambesi who explained how the FIS has come to disqualify the Norwegian cross-country skier, applying the regulation to the letter (the athlete who is overtaking even if he commits the slightest impropriety is always guilty until the opponent completely passes). Furthermore, during the live broadcast, a message arrived from '' Chicco '' Pellegrino, where he explained that the jury followed the rules without the slightest discretion. Again Pellegrino, however, affirmed that in the sprint of Lahti (where Bolshunov had come into contact with Maki) no measures had been taken; he concluded by expressing his disagreement with this rule.
Silvano Valbusa expressed his doubts about this decision: "In addition to Klaebo, cross-country skiing is the loser. There is a risk of creating a dangerous precedent; Klaebo, in my opinion, did not commit any impropriety and the result was not overturned. . "
The same thought also by Massimiliano Ambesi: "Honestly, I find it a little sensible decision. Taking the regulation literally, there could also be such a choice, but a minimum of flexibility in such situations is needed, especially when it comes to sprinting. final of a 50 km world championship. For me the moral winner remains Klaebo, who drove a crazy race and denied many who gave Bolshunov as dominator of the mass start. I do not understand the appeal of Russia, since the gold for Bolshunov was however nuanced ... "
It was not a positive world championship for the Italian team; just as medals have not arrived in biathlon (it has not happened since 2003 that Italy was unable to obtain at least one medal between biathlon and cross country with the world championships concurrently). Furthermore, the blue world championship also finished early, due to the covid positivity in the blue expedition.
"Except Pellegrino and De Fabiani the situation is not at all rosy. I have the impression that this very important event has not been prepared in the right way, disputing almost all the stages of CdM and not trying to get in shape in Oberstdorf. the future a better planning. - explained '' Bubo '' Valbusa, who then said about the premature abandonment of the Italian national team - The situation could have been better managed, as other nations have done (Norway and Slovenia for example). a little too superficial in the management of this chaos by the FISI and the technical staff; it's a shame because you could try to straighten a World Cup that went badly, for example in the men's relay, where there could be big surprises. "
A common criticism has been moved towards the FIS, for the World Cup calendar and the management of some race formats. For Max Ambesi there are also other problems: "The smaller circuits are organized in a chaotic way, we should try to get closer to a competition such as the European Cup for alpine skiing or IBU Cup for biathlon. The risk is to concentrate more and more the fight for victories and podiums between the Scandinavian nations and Russia. We should also think about making events like the Tour de Ski more attractive, playing them once every four years, so the competition takes on value and everyone will participate; otherwise there is a risk a Norway competing only for major events plus a few stages of preparation ".
Silvano Valbusa concluded with a reflection on the calendar of this season finale: "I do not find the meaning of the stage in Engadine: a 15 km in line plus a 50 km pursuit, after the one just disputed at the World Championships, are in my opinion superfluous races. Unfortunately, the interest in cross-country skiing is slowly waning, moving more towards biathlon or other disciplines; we need innovative formats that appeal to viewers and the athletes themselves. "
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